Death Note: Blood Ties
by Zoicite23
Summary: What happens when a group of school students discover a notebook which has the power to kill? At first they go wild at the knowledge of this new power, but eventually they start to die off as well. Ethan must discover who's killing them before he is next.
1. Evolution

**This chapter deals with a bit of shifting perspectives to start with, but only so I can introduce each of the characters.**

Ethan:

_My life must be the epitome of boredom_. I thought as I walked the streets to Brisbane State High School. Navy and red striped blazers and maroon shirts crowded about at the school gates up ahead. Nothing exciting ever happened in Brisbane.

Outside of school I had an either dying or dead social life, I hadn't had a girlfriend since Year Eight (that was about three years ago) and the only thing I could do with my spare time was to study for my exams this semester, not that I was any good at school either. Having no particular academic gift and being not particularly sporty my time was spent avoiding my family by locking the door to my room and playing online computer games. As I walked through the crowd of teenagers I heard snippets of gossip, hushed conversation and excited plans for going out drinking on the weekend. It was all so pointless.

I stopped when I noticed Joel Robinson in front of me. A big Year Twelve kid who was shoving around some small Year Ten. Thankfully he hadn't noticed that I had almost walked into him. Being the coward that I was I pulled up the bag strap around my shoulder and walked past him and through the school gates.

The bell rang. Just in time, again. One of the deputy principles, Mr. Harris, was trying to usher students over twice his size along to their classrooms and they blatantly ignored him. It was Monday morning and a lot of students were filled with an apathetic feeling of constraint.

School held no interest for me but at the same time I wanted to be here. Anywhere was better than being home. Anything was better than being near my abusive step father_. Just let something interesting happen today, _I silently prayed,_ good or bad I just want to feel something to get me through the day._

Jack:

The bell rang. _Stuff it, I ain't going_. Mr. Harris, being a total loser was trying to get students to move off to their classrooms. One of them should deck him, that would have made my day.

I really wished I was smoking some weed right now. Whatever people called it: pot, grass, marijuana, cannabis, I wanted some. People gave me names too: dope-head, space-head, crack smoker, whatever, they didn't understand. I wasn't like the other kids that smoked weed at this school because they just wanted some fun or to look "cool".

If your life was as crap as mine was, you did whatever you could to survive. That's why I took risks and went joyriding and did all that crazy stuff. Anything to make you happy; so that your own life would be interesting enough for you to want to keep living in it. I stayed leaning against the fence with my hands deep inside the pockets of my trousers.

As most of the students started streaming into the school through the gate I reluctantly decided to push off the fence and go inside before a teacher told me too. Emma was supposed to meet me by the front of the school gates but she had missed me again. I was considering dumping her.

I probably would if things didn't get better soon. She was fun to be around when I was high, but when I went down again I remembered she was self-obsessed and patronising. She was good-looking, but that only went so far in a relationship; I was starting to notice that she was losing her appeal to me.

We hadn't even done anything sexual together yet, apart from making out. I found my roll call room and lined up, keeping a distance between myself and my fellow students. I leaned against the brick wall and closed my eyes, and tried to zone out the noise around me.

Hannah:

My silver Toyota economy car swerved in between two other parked cars and I unbuckled and opened the door. The bell had already rang and the last of the students were walking through the gates. 'In the End' by Linkin Park was blasting at full volume and got a few stares from students.

I twisted the key and pulled it out of the ignition, shutting off the music. I swung the door closed and locked it with the beeper. I then immediately inserted my head phones and started playing some Three Days Grace.

Music helped me think. I was always listening to music and because of it my hearing had become more than a little affected. I knew that my choice of music differed from the digitally-created fake techno-music most girls my age were into, and I suppose my nails and bracelets I wore were all black and my mascara was a little too dark.

However I was by no definition an emo or goth. I just reflected my inner emotions through the style of clothes I wore, but really, which teenager in Brisbane didn't feel at least a little angst and disappointment with their life? I tucked a strand of my dirty blonde hair away from my face.

School was agony. Not just because you had to listen to teachers go on and on about whatever, but because I had this horrible hole of loneliness inside of me. There was no one at this school that seemed to have even an iota of similarities with me.

All of the girls at this school were stuck-up bitches anyway. I really needed a boyfriend. Even though I felt this emptiness I knew that I wouldn't talk to anyone, social interaction was something I gave up on back in Year Seven. I wasn't about to change that part of my life now.

Billy:

I sat in roll call at the back of my classroom with my head down, quietly. I turned over my arms to examine the cut marks I had given myself the night before. I had cried so much then, it was great. The word came back to me again, _fag_, it came to me in my father's voice and I shivered then pulled back the sleeves of my blazer to hide the self-inflicted wounds.

They were only shallow, I didn't really want to die. Mostly I was afraid of what it would be like on the other side. My light brown hair obscured my face with my long fringe while I stared down at my desk. I liked it that way.

The roll call teacher, Mrs. Lee, started to call out names off the roll and the students responded with the standard "Yep!" when they heard their names called out. When I heard Mrs. Lee call "Ethan Jones" I looked up to where I heard Ethan respond,

"Here." I stared wide-eyed at him.

He stared ahead with a very serious and cold expression, with a hint of boredom. His hair was night black and kind of long, he wore black rectangular glasses. His dark eyes turned to stare back at me and his expression didn't change. I turned my face back to my desk in front of me and a blush started warming my face.

A short while later Mrs. Lee called:

"William Taylor" and I replied:

"Yep," timidly, like the rest of the students. After the rest of the names were called and Mrs. Lee read out pointless notices that didn't relate to me the bell rang again indicating the start of first period. I wouldn't have noticed the announcements anyway, I was sitting there with a mixture of embarrassment and euphoria. I stood with my other classmates and was one of the last ones to leave. Environmental class was on first but thankfully I now had something to think about to keep me from getting bored for the rest of the day.

Gallu:

I sailed the skies above cursing myself for my own foolishness. I could already see the faces of the other Shinigami laughing at me, especially Ladon. I imagined Ladon's skeletal figure shaking with laughter,

"That stupid fool Gallu! Didn't I say it? Didn't I say that if ever there was a Shinigami stupid enough to drop their death note in the human realm, it would be him?"

I made up my mind. I was simply never going to return to the Shinigami realm. I would stay here in the human world to avoid the humiliation of having to beg the Shinigami King for another notebook. After a few centuries, Ladon and the other Shinigami would probably assume I was dead.

I knew, however, that although the human world was beautiful, I would eventually become too bored having no one to talk to and then I would have to return. I started sailing closer towards the ground, my red bat-like wings beating occasionally against the whipping wind, giving me bursts of speed. I knew I had dropped it along this area, somewhere. I just have to make sure I pick up the notebook before a human touches it.

If a human got a hold of my death note it would become their property and I would be unable to take it from them. I would be stuck, following around him/her until I saw them die; but for all I knew that might be interesting. It would be a change from sitting around and just playing cards all the time with the other Shinigami.

In fact, if that happened I could probably tell Ladon and the others I had done it on purpose because I was bored. They'd never believe me. I kept flying until I noticed a school up ahead, directly below where I had flown before. I'd been about to travel back to the Shinigami realm presumably with my own death note before I had realised that it wasn't with me. I started scanning the grounds of the school carefully with my large yellow eyes.

Ethan:

For Earth and Environment studies, my teacher Ms. Leroy had taken her class out onto the school sports oval to collect samples of earth for chemical testing of nitrogenous trace elements. It was quite boring, and pointless. I started twirling a strand of my dark hair behind my ear with my fingers as I absent-mindedly registered what my teacher was saying.

Ms. Leroy was about middle-aged with long brown hair. The brown tinge to her skin and her slight accentuated words implied that she had some form of overseas ethnicity, but I didn't have a clue what that could be. I pushed my glasses up my nose when they started to slide down my face, and waited for Ms. Leroy to stop going on about whatever she was saying. She had the annoying habit of pausing after saying something and waiting for a response from the class that they had understood before continuing.

I started touching my glasses again as I usually did when my mind was wandering. I hated having to wear glasses all the time. I had put it off for as long as I could when I was younger but by the time I was twelve I was as blind as a bat. It was a little disconcerting that without these glasses I wouldn't be able to see someone's face even if they were standing right in front of me. At least they were stylish: thick, black and rectangular shaped; not nerdy looking glasses.

Eventually Ms. Leroy told us to collect dirt samples in the test tubes we were carrying and to record the abundance of plants around the sample. I walked off into the small forest of trees that surrounded the sports oval. I could see to the left of me sports students running around the oval in their maroon coloured sports shirts. The sun shone through the trees and the air I breathed in was cold and smelt of morning.

It was so dull. The sky was a blanket of grey and the sun was barely visible, peeking through a gap in the cloaked sky. It was cold, but considering it was in the middle of April it was to be expected. It was miserable to think it would only get colder as winter came closer. I hated this time of year, I liked weather to be hot so I could go to the pool.

When the light was barely visible and only partially flowed through the canopy of leaves overhead I stopped. I looked back at the other students, the closest group being about ten metres away; lots of space for me. I knelt down beside a tree and dug into the damp earth with my test tube. I shook it around until it stopped sticking to the sides and went to the bottom.

I frowned at the black dirt and then walked off to a different location, but not going any deeper into the forest. I decided that for my second sample I would find a space of earth with no life around it to compare it to my first sample when we got back to the lab. I kept walking and then entered a beam of light that came from above. I stopped and looked up, shielding my eyes from the bright light. Then I noticed something strange.

There was an outline of a shape up in the tree top. It looked square so it stood out from the leaves around it. _Was it a book? How had it gotten up there?_ I turned around and saw that the students before had wandered off. It appeared that I was alone.

Approaching the tree that the book seemed to be stuck in, I examined the strange object more. It was too far up for me to pull it out, so instead I stood underneath and started shaking the branch it was caught in. Unfortunately I was reminded of how hand-eye co-ordination was never my forte as the book slipped out and whacked me in the face.

I cursed and clutched at my nose. Luckily the book wasn't very heavy, but it had knocked the glasses off my face. I knelt down and started searching blindly with my hand. I found them and put them back on, luckily they weren't damaged. I looked around and found the book lying on the ground beside me.

It was thin, like a notebook, and black. On the front written in some strange font, all in capitals and white against the black cover were the words 'DEATH NOTE'. I blinked and stared at the book. I then looked up, still no one was anywhere in sight. Good thing too, that would have been embarrassing if I had been seen.

I reached and picked up the book. I opened it in the middle and saw that it had blank lined sheets of paper. I started flicking back to the start, and then I saw handwriting. I had no idea what was used as a writing tool, or the language that the obscure symbols belonged to. It looked like two words were written down every line in different languages and then after them was information scrawled in the same weird pictographic language.

I noticed that some parts of it were in English. That's when I realised that these were names and that next to them was something written in code. These names were in different languages, some I recognised as different kinds of Asian languages and some Arabic and Indian as well. It seemed as if names from different languages all over the world were written in this book, I wondered what that script was written after each name.

I kept flicking through and found out that the first ten pages were filled with names, then I found black pages with different writing on them, in English. The page was surrounded by a white border and under the picture of a skull in what looked like a sun at the top of the page, was random notes saying something about gods of death. The page said 'Death Note – How to use it XVIII'. I skipped to the very front and opened it from the beginning.

'_The human whose name is written in this note shall die_'. I read the first instruction in the book. A smile started to spread across my face. Something interesting had happened to me, I guess. Who would have gone to all the trouble of making this and then leave it lying around here? It was an interesting prank, although kind of pointless. There could be no way someone left it in the forest hoping someone would coincidently notice it and take it.

Also, as soon as someone wrote someone else's name in the book they would know straight away that it was fake when the person they wrote didn't end up dying, so not very convincing as a prank. I closed the book. I might want to use it when I got home, not that there was any chance that it worked. It still looked pretty cool. I might end up using it as a journal, my old journal was pretty battered. Deciding that I didn't want anyone noticing me leaving the forest with this book I hid it under my blazer. I hurried out of the trees before Ms. Leroy could get angry at me for disappearing on her.

. . .

When I was heading home I was excited at the prospect of reading what else was inside the death note. I wanted to read all the things that this crazy guy who made this book had written. My house was small and the white paint was peeling. There was no comfort at the sight of it. No warm childhood memories, even though I had lived here all my life. My most painful experiences had happened at this house. It was definitely not a home to me.

When I pulled my key out of my bag and unlocked the door I had intended to go straight to my room but the way was blocked by my step father. I never called him Dad, my real father was dead, I didn't even call him my step Dad. He was always just Reece. He was balding and in his late forties, he was several heads taller than me and towered over me when I looked at him. His massive beer gut would have made him have over three times the body mass I had without the additional height.

His eyes were glazed and his nose was red. He swayed where he stood and I could tell from the smell of him that he was drunk, on cheap vodka. I wondered idly why he wasn't at work but then figured he probably had taken one of his weekly sick days.

"Have you got yourself a job yet?" he demanded.

"You asked me last night," I told him calmly. "I haven't had time between then and now to apply for a job anywhere."

"Don't be smart with me, boy!" He was trying to pick a fight with me. _What kind of a bully picks a fight with someone less than half his age, let alone his own step son?_ I tried to appease him though, so that I could get to my room.

"I'll try harder and start looking for work."

"You better. You're almost seventeen, I want you out of this house soon! You cost too much to take care of!"

I didn't point out the fact that most of the food in the house was eaten by him and that most of the money was spent on his constant supply of booze. I had no idea what my mother saw in him. Reece staggered away from the door and went into the living room. I opened my door and went into my tiny room. I closed the door and clicked the lock in place.

Laying back in my bed I unzipped my bag and pulled out the death note. I held it in my hands and just looked at it for a while. Then I opened it from the beginning and started to read more. '_This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person's face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected_.' That makes sense. I thought to myself and then continued to read.

The next rule, '_If the cause of death is written within 40 seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen' _was followed by the rule '_If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply die of a heart attack._' I kept reading, my interest growing the more I found out about the death note. '_After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds._'

Whoever made this had put a whole lot of detail in just for a prank. I wondered who in the school was clever and morbid enough to create something like this. Then it occurred to me that the book could have been hidden years ago, and had only just been found now. The writer could have intended the book to never be found. Now there was just one thought going through my mind. _Who should I kill?_

**Ethan was the first to discover a notebook of unparalleled power, so what will happen next? Review?**


	2. Killer

**Ethan begins pondering a suitable test subject for the death note. How will this play out?**

Ethan:

_Who should I kill?_ The thought drifted through my mind. At first I thought it should be someone who deserves it. I thought of school and then I immediately thought of Joel Robinson, the Year 12 bully. He would deserve to die.

Joel would only ever pick on someone when he knew a teacher wasn't looking. In primary school and even middle school troublesome students can be dealt with quickly and in a relatively harmless manner. I knew though that adults were much different. Once you crossed the bridge from middle school to high school the bullies you knew that used to flush heads down the toilet are now into drugs and committing vicious bashings.

Once a difficult child in middle school could not be fixed when they entered high school they must be eliminated before they became a threat to society. Joel Robinson was that such child. I had no doubt in my mind that people would benefit from his death. Not really believing that the death note would ever possibly kill Joel I sat up from my bed and headed over to my desk.

I heard noises from outside of my room, I stopped and listened. Hearing nothing, I opened the first drawer of my desk and pulled out a ball point pen. I sat down on my bed with the notebook in my lap. I heard the noises again; it was Mum and Reece. I think they were arguing about something.

I shrugged and then opened the notebook. Feeling a little silly I skipped past the used pages until I found a blank page. I lowered the pen towards the paper, then stopped. Reece was screaming at the top of his lungs. I heard him shouting my name and I realised they were arguing about me.

I got up, leaving the notebook and pen on my bed. I opened the door and entered the living room.

"He's got to go!" Reece was roaring. "He's mooched off me here in this house for too long!"

"He's my son! He's only sixteen years old!" My mother was smaller then me, but bravely standing up to her savage drunken lover.

My mother never did much ever since my father died, right now she was still wearing a nightgown and slippers. I was sure the only reason she was with Reece was because he was our only source of income.

"He's not my son!" he growled through his teeth. Mum looked like she was about to snap back at him but then Reece did something I'd never be able to forgive him for.

He stepped forward towards my mother and grabbed her by the sides and started shaking her. Everything went red and I jumped forward before I realised what my legs were doing.

"Let her go!" I screamed and grabbed one of Reece's large arms in an attempt to pry him from her. He flung his arm back in order to knock my hands away. While being successful at that the back of his hand also managed to strike my cheek bone and I was knocked off my feet by the impact.

My mother gasped and Reece stared down at me as if, in his drunken stupor, he didn't know how I had gotten there. My cheek seared with pain that caused my eyes to water. My shoulder where I had hit the floor also stung badly. Reece's expression remained perplexed for only a moment before it turned vicious again.

"You're not my son!" He repeated. I got off the floor and ran to my room, tears of anger pouring down my face. I could hear my mother sobbing from the other room. As soon as I had slammed the door closed I went straight to the notebook lying on my bed. In furious rage I picked up the ball point pen and wrote across the page in a messy scrawl, all in capitals, with enough force that the indentation of the writing would have marked three extra pages: 'REECE CALDON'.

From the other room I could still hear them talking. Reece was trying to comfort my mother. I hated him so much. The thought kept circling through my head. _I hope you die. I hope you die. I hope you die_. Then I couldn't hear any noise coming from outside my room. I strained my ears to listen. Perhaps they had left? Or maybe Reece had passed out on the sofa while my mother locked herself in her room.

I felt disgusted in my mother as well. All the damage that Reece had caused and she still hung onto him. I understood that she was suffering from her husband's death, but Dad had died over three years ago. Reece was nowhere near a suitable substitute, in any way. I heard a massive crash coming from the other room, followed by a scream. My heart skipped a beat.

I opened the door of my room and stared into the living room. Reece had collapsed onto his back with a look of horror frozen on his face. His eyes stared unseeingly towards me. Mum stared down at him with both hands covering her face, as pale as a ghost. "He-he j-j-just collapsed!" she told me while she shook with fear. Mustering her strength she turned and raced across the room to the landline and called triple zero.

I heard her asking for an ambulance, but that was all I heard. My eyes weren't able to move from Reece's face. My hands started shaking. My stomach was ice. _Did I just kill him? Did the death note I just wrote in kill Reece Caldon?_ I then found myself doubling over and throwing up onto the living room floor.

. . .

The next day I made sure I got to school bright and early. I made my way through the school gates and looked around to see that only a few students were at school. The less witnesses the better. I clutched the death note from under my blazer. I was still pale at what I had seen the death note do to Reece. No, I corrected myself. What I had done. I was now much more uneasy and aware as to what I was concealing and gripping so hard my knuckles were white.

It was a weapon, a weapon of instant death. More than that. It was evil. Whoever had created or at least used this notebook last had realised that it was evil and had thrown it into the forest intending for it never to have been found. I knew what I had to do. I had to put it back there and make sure that no one ever found it.

I still remember the ambulance workers carrying Reece away on a stretcher with a sheet covering his body. No matter how they had tried to comfort her my mother never stopped crying. I had never meant to cause her pain. Killing Reece had been selfish, even if he had deserved it. Then again, who was I to decide who deserved to live or die? The only thing I did understand was that Reece was dead, and I had killed him. His death would not be overlooked, karma would catch up with me and make me pay for what I had done.

As soon as I was in the oval I headed towards the forest but stopped to look around and make sure no one was watching me. When I didn't see anyone I headed into the forest. I walked until the light filtered down from the trees in small holes in the darkness from the canopy above. Clutching the death note in my hand I removed it from under my blazer and threw it like a Frisbee deep into the forest. I heard it crash through the leaves as it spun through the air, hopefully where no one would ever find it. After that I turned and left all thoughts about the death note behind me.

. . .

One week after Reece had died my mother had shown no sign that she had gotten any better. I suppose Reece had been the second man she had loved that had then died before his time. I was happy to learn that Reece wasn't going to be having a funeral. With no other living relatives and us not having the money for a proper send-off Mum thought it best just not to bother. Either that or she was too distraught to think about it.

I had never really been eager to get a job, that had always been what Reece had wanted for me. Now that the only source of income for my mother was centre link and single parent benefits from the government I had no money to buy things. In all honesty I was just being lazy, but I was really averted to the idea of finding work while I was at school. Maybe in a couple of years when I was eighteen.

It was never like I had been given things in the first place other than a lap top for school. I hated hearing other kids talking about all their X-box and Play station games that their parents could afford to buy for them. I didn't complain though, I knew how much worse this must be for my mother. While she was distraught she had actually blamed me saying that when Reece had hit me and knocked me to the ground that had triggered his heart attack.

I didn't blame her though, considering I actually had been the cause of Reece's heart attack. My brother had flown in from the central coast in order to comfort my mother, which was a strange thing because he hardly ever came to see us. He was twenty-four, seven years older than me and we rarely spoke to each other. I didn't know if he planned to help Mum financially and I didn't ask.

Nothing interesting had actually happened until Tuesday which was school assembly day. Mr. Harris had been informing Year 11 students in the hall about the mid-semester exams. I was sitting with my roll group on the floor, not really paying attention to what he was saying. Exams were the least of my problems right now.

The teachers had gotten about half-way through the assembly and while a teacher had been explaining an excursion for a drama class the doors to the hall burst open. Joel Robinson stood in the doorway and stared at everyone in the hall. Teachers and students all turned to look back at him. I noticed his eyes. They were wide and frantic looking.

Then to my utter disbelief Joel raised his arms above his head and ran inside screaming:

"God will smite me! God will smite me!" over and over again. He darted past teachers and ran to the front of the assembly where he yelled one more time and then collapsed, quite dead. Nobody made a sound. Then a very high pitched scream could be heard from the front row, afterwards more people started screaming until the hall was filled with cries and wails.

Teachers started to herd their roll call classes outside and Mrs. Lee told all of us to leave quickly but carefully in single file through the open doors that Joel had come through. My face was frozen in utter astonishment, as was all of the students around me. As soon as we left to fresh air I started to think clearly. That had been completely out of character for Joel. Even if it had just been an accident that he had collapsed it didn't seem like Joel to mess up in front of teachers, especially that bad.

There was also no way that he would start screaming about something like God. Joel was not religious. He was obscene and vindictive but most importantly he was cowardly and feared teachers more than anything else. My eyes widened in horror as I came to the only possible solution. I actually stopped walking and felt whoever was behind me run into my back. There were curses and shouts of anger from behind me at whoever had stopped the line.

The death note could control someone's actions before they died. I distinctly remembered reading the last rule on the first page of the death note. _After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds_. Joel Robinson was widely disliked by a lot of people in the school for being a bully. So someone had found the death note and decided to test it on him, just like I almost had. Not only that, but this person had taken the time to write down a cause of death and details about the death as well.

This meant that someone must have seen me try to dispose of it by throwing it into the forest. _Damn! If only I had tried to burn the notebook instead!_ Whoever killed Joel Robinson was probably someone in Year 11 considering where he had died and when. Then I shuddered as a new more frightening thought entered my head. Whoever has the death note saw me try to dispose of it, that means they know that I know what it does. I'm the only one who could figure it was the death note that killed Joel Robinson, so I'm the only one who knows that it was murder.

This means that whoever has the death note could try to kill me next in order to cover up the fact that they had killed someone. Depending on who they are they might know me well or not if they're in one of my classes. In order to kill someone with the death note you need a name and a face. So this person will either try to figure out my name or they already know it and are writing it down this very moment. I could imagine that in the details for the death they would force me to meet them secretly and tell them if I had revealed the death note to anyone else and to tell him/her what their names were before I died.

However it's too late to tell anyone, now that I don't have the death note. They'd never believe me otherwise. Also, considering it would look suspicious if two students died of heart attacks in roughly the same time frame this killer would probably use means other than a heart attack to kill me. I shuddered as I imagined someone writing my name into the death note and then putting "car accident" next to it. I had to find out who was in possession of the death note, and quickly, before they found me.

Jack:

I watched him silently from a distance. I couldn't see the look on his face but I could tell by the way he had frozen and held up the line that he had come to the realisation that someone had followed him into the forest and found that book of his. One week ago I had made it to school early as usual, giving up on trying to get Emma to meet me at the school gates, I just went and sat on the same seat I normally did.

I hadn't had a joint since the Monday before and all I wanted was a high. I knew there were other kids at this school that also did drugs, so I figured some of the stupid ones might bring some to school and sell them to me. When I saw the boy with the black hair and glasses moving franticly towards the forest at the edge of the sports oval I did find it quite strange. He actually looked around to make sure no one was watching him.

The seat I always sat on was mostly obscured by bush from his direction so he hadn't noticed me. Of course the first thought that entered my mind was that he had drugs. It would explain why he looked frantic and the forest would be a secluded place in order to sell or take drugs. It was when he left looking relieved that I became really suspicious. Like his previous anxiety had been replaced by a cool calm.

Not even I was crazy enough to get stoned while I was at school. _So who was this kid? Did he just take drugs or hide them? _I was considering approaching him and asking if he would sell me any. I had a twenty dollar note, it probably couldn't get me much but just enough for a bit of a hit for when I got home. Although the fact that he had looked so concerned of whether or not he was being seen made it look like he wanted it all for himself.

I knew about three dealers that I met occasionally and their prices had sky rocketed. They kept blabbing on about economy and the police getting close to catching them and it was all quite aggravating to listen to. I might even need to take up a second job just to keep buying the stuff. I noticed the dark haired boy was no longer concerned if anyone was watching him. So instead I decided to go into the forest after he had left.

I walked through the trees; a normal person would have given up but a druggie like me was prepared to go the extra mile. I walked until it had started to get dark from the thickness of the leaves overhead. That's when I stepped on something. I looked down and moved my foot. It was just a book, not at all what I was looking for. Dirt from my shoe had smudged on the cover, but what made me pick it up were the two words written in white against the black cover in some strange font and all in capitals: 'DEATH NOTE'.

I had taken the notebook home that day and read all that was in it. I hadn't actually ended up using it until the next day when I was supposed to meet with Tony.

"Mr. Macnair isn't it, how are you?" I said politely when I saw him approach on time, as usual, to our meeting place at a park bench partially obscured by trees. It was a little too public for my liking but Tony always proffered it that way, in case one of his clients tried to rob him.

"Macmullen actually," he corrected. "But you can just call me Tony, you know that, you've been my client for, what, five months now?"

"Right, of course." In reality all I wanted was to find out his last name so I could test the notebook on him. Tony Macmullen was a few years older than me, skinny with blue eyes, a shaven head and a wide smile.

He was always nice, to his clients at least.

"That'll be eighty." he told me after he had given me the small wrapped bag of weed.

"Eighty? Eighty what? Cents? Because I sure hope you don't mean you want eighty bucks for this little thing?"

"Don't blame me," he said raising his arms in an attempt to look innocent. "I'm the distributor, so I need to fill a certain quota. Plus Nicki just got himself arrested so I have one less client now."

"How many regular clients do you have other than me?" I asked him.

He clicked his tongue as he thought "'bout three maybe four." I stared at the bag he was carrying with him. It was situated behind his body from me on the seat. So he was still careful with me. So much for me being a trusted regular client.

"Is there more in there?" I asked pointing at the bag.

"There is if you're willing to pay for it." he told me. I angrily pulled out my wallet and gave him the money. More than half of the money I had got from working at Video Ezy this week was now gone on this little bag of grass.

"Pleasure doing business with you." he said with a smile, zipped up his bag and left to rip off another client. There are lots of reasons why people kill. Jealousy, revenge, hatred are all reasons why some people kill. People who would kill for these reasons are called monsters in the eyes of society.

Then there are those who kill and steal to sate their own addictions. These people are desperate and are maybe even more dangerous than the other kind of killer. I wasn't really sure about Tony's last name at the time. When I heard it I realised I wasn't sure whether his surname had an 'a' or a 'u' or if it had one 'l' or two.

Luckily for me Tony was the kind of person who liked to label things, not a good habit for drug dealers to have considering if the police found that bag it would lead straight to him. When I had looked at the bag of drugs and had asked Tony about it, really I was only trying to read his name written on one of the straps in black permanent marker.

_Tony Macmullen. Cause of death: Drug overdose. Circumstances of death: Leaves all of the drugs and money he has on him in the public men's bathroom of New Farm Park in the furthest cubicle from the door. Ingests a small amount of cannabis and then exits the bathroom, crosses three streets and dies._

I was desperate and I had no idea the death note would have worked as well as it had. It is incredibly unusual for someone to die from taking marijuana, unless they had taken it in egregious amounts. I knew Tony got his drugs from some big drug crime boss although I didn't know who. If I had killed Tony with a heart attack his superiors would of gone looking for the drugs he was supposed to sell so they could reclaim them.

I had made it so that his death would be announced by professionals as a drug overdose. Unless this guy that Tony worked for had access to the information that the examiners who checked his body would have had, they would have to assume that he ate all of the drugs before he died. They would never be able to find out the exact amount of drugs he had taken.

The fact is there is always a minuscule chance that you will die from just taking a tiny bit of any illegal substance, even if it is a very small chance. The contributing factors are mostly depending on the person, and chance. I didn't know what type of person Tony was, but I did control that chance of death, with this new notebook.

If Tony's stash went missing and he hadn't died of a drug overdose, I could be sure that his buyers would be the first to be investigated. Tony had told me that he only had three to four regular sellers, so it wouldn't have been long before I was visited by another one of this crime boss's workers. Killing him this way was the only way to ensure that I wouldn't be investigated and found out. To be on the safe side I would also have to make sure I didn't sell any of the drugs, at least not large amounts of it, to anyone.

I didn't know who this boy was that had thrown away the death note, but I wasn't nearly so foolish. If I played smart, I could have all the drugs and money I wanted. Tony had left the drugs in the bathroom and all of his money exactly as I had specified. The killing of Joel Robinson had just been for laughs. Next I should make sure that the kid who was the previous owner of this book dies before he reveals the secret of the death note to anyone.

**Complication! The death note has found its way to a killer! Will Ethan ever be able to get it back or will he be murdered? Review?**


	3. Culprit

**Jack is deciding if he should kill Ethan soon. Their rivalry has begun. Whose team are you cheering for?**

Jack:

I knew his first name started with 'e'._ Edward or Ethan or something_. Even if I knew his first name I still needed to discover his last name in order to kill him. What I really needed were school photos. I suppose looking back, killing Joel Robinson in front of the assembly wasn't the smartest thing to do. He was a bully, but now the previous owner knows that someone else at the school has the death note.

They've probably figured out that it's someone from the same year as them, too. I frowned; I didn't end up keeping the school photos I had gotten at the start of the year. What I needed was to get someone else's. Or better yet, I could simply ask teachers or students what that boy's full name is.

I couldn't risk the chance that they'd tell him that I'd asked. I suppose it wouldn't matter if I had managed to get his name, then I could just kill him before he could do anything. Suppose the person I asked didn't know this boy's name, but told him I'd asked. Then I'd be in trouble. I might then have to kill him in ways other than this notebook.

_No_, I thought to myself. _That would be far too risky_. Besides, did I even really need to kill him? He is no threat to me now, no one would ever believe him if he talked about a notebook that could kill. Even if he did believe I was the person with the notebook and that I didn't have his name, what could he do?

Try to kill me by himself? I would simply run away to a safe distance and write his name in my notebook once I found it out, which wouldn't be too hard if I didn't need to be subtle. I didn't like the idea of killing innocents, I suppose he is probably the one who wrote Reece Caldon's name in the notebook but he showed remorse by trying to get rid of it.

Or maybe he had just been hiding it for later, either way, he probably still had a family like I did. I suppose it was kind of hypocritical to decide to kill drug dealers only, considering I also took drugs. Then again, I never tried to justify what I did with the notebook when I used it. I killed Tony for drugs and money, that's all there was to it.

I didn't know if it was right or wrong, but I didn't care either. However, killing a student at school didn't feel right to me. It would also look very suspicious. Whether I decided to kill him or not I should at least wait a week before doing so.

. . .

The next day I was walking to the bus stop, early as usual. It was grey and cold, like it had been all month. I kept my hands in my pockets as I walked; the death note was inside my school bag. Should I ever be approached by its previous owner I would be prepared to kill him if necessary.

I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and I had the familiar sensation that I was being followed. I stopped and turned around. I couldn't see anything but the feeling that I was being watched was still there. I kept walking, then I heard more noise. _Wing beats?_ I started walking faster and then turned the corner.

There was the bus stop, a sheltered area next to the bus sign. An old man wearing earmuffs and a beanie was seated on the metal bench, and a young woman dressed in business clothes with ear phones in her ears was standing by the street waiting patiently. I approached and then sat down on the bench at the other side of the old man.

I could see other students from my school that were walking over here to get to the bus stop. I stared ahead of me.

"Hey there." a friendly albeit crackly and frightening voice said to me. I turned my head. A tall red demon with large yellow eyes, bat wings and terrible sharp teeth smiled at me.

I screamed. I screamed so loud that the old man jumped up and spun around and the lady with the earphones in turned to look at me. I was lying on the ground staring as the creature stood ten feet from me and watched.

"Are you okay?" the old man was at my side and the woman was looking over concerned. It seemed like they couldn't see the monster.

"Sorry about that," it said, moving its terrible mouth. "I guess I should have waited for you to be alone before I started talking to you, I just got so excited." The other people here weren't alerted to the sound of its voice either. This must be the Shinigami that was mentioned in the instructions for the death note. A god of death.

"Are you okay, son?" the old man asked again. I realised I hadn't given him an answer so I nodded and sat up.

"I saw a spider." I told them lamely. The two of them stared at me as if I was insane. I got onto my feet and then walked past the Shinigami without looking at it. The Shinigami turned but made no move to follow me.

I turned the corner and made sure no one could see me, then I waited. The Shinigami turned the corner and approached me until it was about six feet away.

"My name is Gallu." he said politely. "What is yours, may I ask?" I did my best to transform my fear into anger.

"There's no need to answer that. You already know my name, don't you, Shinigami?" Gallu gave a small laugh as if he was impressed by my courage.

"So you must have read all the rules of the death note." he surmised.

"'_If a human uses the note, a god of death usually appears in front of him/her within 39 days after he/she uses the note._'" I recited. "It's on the fourth page of the instructions. Also on page three '_The human who touches the death note can recognise the image and voice of its original owner, a Shinigami, even if the human is not the owner of the note._'"

"Well aren't you just the little book worm." he joked.

"Most importantly," I continued "On page five of the death note instructions: '_The human who becomes the owner of the death note can, in exchange for half his/her remaining life, get the eyes of a Shinigami which will enable him/her to see a human's name and remaining life span when looking through them._' That would be when I'm looking at someone's face, right?"

Gallu didn't say anything for a while. He stared and I wasn't quite able to read the expression on his horrid face but I assumed from how he spoke next that he was curious. "You sure know a lot about the death note. I certainly wasn't expecting this. Does the ability to know people's names just by looking at their face appeal to you?"

"Of course it does. If I had that power I would be able to kill anyone I wanted, just by looking at them. Using the death note would be that much easier." I thought about the previous owner of the death note. I wouldn't even need to uncover his name, if I had that power I could kill him today at school if I wanted.

"I feel I must tell you some things." Gallu said. "Just to make sure you understand. I can see your name and lifespan above your face. You are Jack Martin, as for your lifespan, if you except the deal you would only be able to see your own name above your head. You wouldn't be allowed to see how long you have left to live. Even if you could see your own lifespan you would still have to convert it to human time, it would only look like a bunch of random numbers.

Also, you can't see the lifespan of whoever is in possession of the death note either. I could convert your lifespan into human time and tell you how many years you'd have left, but there's no way I'd ever do that." Gallu gave a short gargling laugh.

"So even though you can see everyone's name and lifespan above their heads you wouldn't just tell me the names of who I wanted to kill? I read another rule of the death note which said that '_Gods of death in principle don't do anything to help or prevent the deaths in the notebook_', that you just have to follow me until I die and the notebook becomes yours again."

"It has so many rules." Gallu sighed. "I don't even think they're all written down in there...but yes, the notebook you're using was originally mine. I dropped it and it looks like you've found it. So now I have to follow you around until the notebook is destroyed or I see you die. For that reason it would benefit me greatly if you accepted this deal.

"If you were supposed to live another forty years you would only live twenty. If ten years you would live five. If one year you would live six months. If a day you would live twelve hours." He laughed again. It seemed he had a very sick sense of humour. "So is it a deal then? Getting the Shinigami eyes is painless, a lot like putting on contact lenses." I stared at him quietly for a while.

"Will you tell me how many years I'd be giving up?"

"Wouldn't dream of it. Not that I sleep..." I closed my eyes for a second and then they opened full of determination.

"As if I would ever do something as stupid as that! I may do drugs and other things but I'm not going to throw half my life away! Not except as a last minute resort and if it's the only way!" Gallu sighed and started rubbing the back of his neck with his large scaly hands.

"Damn, it looks like I'll be here for a while then. At least make sure you use the death note to do something interesting with it, otherwise this will be so boring." I could hear the bus stopping and I turned to run. "Hey wait! Where are you going?" I heard Gallu call.

"Don't talk to me in public." I called back and then turned the corner, headed toward the bus stop and hopped into the bus before the door closed.

I showed the bus driver my bus pass and then walked on. I sat in one of the empty seats at the back of the bus. I heard wing beats again and tried not to shout out as I saw Gallu pass through the roof of the bus and land standing in the aisle aside from me.

"That was kind of rude, you know." He said to me. I looked around, but no one had noticed him landing.

I did my best to ignore him by staring out the window. He kept talking however. "I know you said I'm not to talk to you in public but no one can hear me other than you, so it doesn't really matter. You're the one that actually can't talk to me while we're near other people." I sighed and put my head in my hands hoping Gallu would see it as a sign that I wanted him to shut up.

He didn't. "It seems like I'll be here for a while, the rules are that I follow you around until you die or transfer ownership of the notebook or if it's destroyed, I'm pretty sure I've actually already told you that... anyway, listen. What I really meant by that was I thought it would be a good idea for the two of us to get along as best as we can. I didn't ask for your name because I'm stupid but because it's polite."

Gallu talked the entire trip of the bus, he talked about the death note and people and Shinigami. He had comments on everything he saw. God did he talk. For a monster I was quickly realising that Gallu wasn't actually that scary. While I sat in class he asked me three times why I wasn't talking to him before remembering that I wasn't supposed to and apologising.

It wasn't until lunch time when I sat by myself that I asked him through my teeth.

"Gallu, does the death note work on Shinigami?" He looked at me and then said.

"No, it says so on the first page. 'The human whose name is written in this notebook' not 'Shinigami'." I sighed.

"That's a shame."

"You don't have to be rude about it!" Gallu said defensively. "I only thought it would be a good idea that we get to know each other! You could have just told me to be quiet."

"Please be quiet."

"That wasn't nice enough." he said stubbornly. I sighed again.

Then I looked up and saw him. The boy with the dark hair and glasses. He was far off but I could still see his back as he walked towards the science block.

"Do you see the boy walking away from us on the other side of the quadrangle, with the black hair?" Gallu looked.

"Yeah, I can. I'd need to be closer to see his name and lifespan though. What about him, do you want to kill him?"

"He had the notebook before I did." I told him.

"Did he?" Gallu said with much interest. My eyes narrowed as I watched him leave.

"I'm not sure yet if I'm going to kill him or not. He doesn't know that I have the death note."

"Not yet." Gallu said absent-mindedly.

"What do you mean?" Gallu looked me straight in the eyes.

"A Shinigami can only be seen and heard by those who have touched that Shinigami's notebook, regardless of whether they own it or not. If that boy turns around right now he'll be able to see me standing with you, alerting him instantly to the fact that you're the one in possession of the death note." My eyes widened. I hadn't thought of that. Now I didn't have a choice, I had to kill him, and before he saw Gallu.

"Get out of here quick, before he sees you!" Gallu seemed a little taken aback by my sudden urgency.

"Actually I'm supposed to stay where you are." I cursed and jumped up, hurrying behind the Creative Arts Block. Gallu lazily followed me behind the building.

"Are you crazy, what if he'd seen you?"

"Relax," Gallu said with aggravating calm. "Just be thankful he wasn't in any of your classes today."

"Do you seriously have to follow me around everywhere now?" I asked him in disbelief.

"Well..." Gallu thought. "I don't really enjoy being here at this school, it's pretty boring so after you've shown me where you live I could probably just wait for you there, unless you were planning on killing someone with the death note, I'd like to be here for that." I frowned.

"It's settled then; I'll ditch school, get you home and then you'll wait for me there."

"Sounds like it'll be boring." Gallu interjected.

"It won't be any more interesting following me around, at least while you're at my house you can watch TV or something. I promise I'll try not to kill people while at school if I can avoid it." Gallu deliberated for a moment.

"All right then."

. . .

Now that Gallu knew where I lived he didn't hang around all the time which was a relief. He tended to wander off or 'investigate the area' as he called it. When he returned he'd talk about interesting people he had stalked and the things he had seen. He didn't bring up the eye deal again.

A week went by without me using the death note again but I was considering using it on another drug dealer once I ran out of weed and money. I didn't want to make a habit out of killing people however, so I was still unsure about it. I made sure to continue purchasing drugs from my other usual sellers in case they were in contact with Tony's boss in any way.

I purchased them with the money I had made Tony leave for me so that it wouldn't look suspicious that right after he died and all his drugs went missing I had stopped buying. Just in case they were told by Tony's boss to mention suspicious clients. I was heading home from the bus stop when I was stopped by someone.

He looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties. He was unshaven and had long and messy brown hair. It was his eyes that I noticed first though, the sunken and purplish colour that mine also had. From regular usage of marijuana.

"Jack Martin. If you wouldn't mind I think we should talk about a few things."

_Was this about Tony? Did they suspect I was involved in his death?_ I tried to calm down, there was no way they could connect me to Tony's death.

"Well I was on my way home, if it's the same direction that you're going, talking is fine." I went to move on and he started walking with me.

"I was actually sent here with unfortunate news." The man said. "One of our sellers, Tony Macmullen passed away about a week ago." My hand clutched my strap tighter, the death note was inside my bag. I hoped I wouldn't have to use it, but just in case...

"That is quite unfortunate. I'd known Tony for a while, he was nice. I never knew much about who he worked for though, only that they supplied the weed and he sold it. He must have told you the names of all the people he regularly sold drugs to, but I'm still curious as to how you found me. I don't even know your name."

"It's Vincent Lowery. Martinez likes to make sure that he has a general idea of who he's selling to. Tony mentioned his clients, one of them he said, was a kid who went to Brisbane State High School. He also said that you lived down this street."

Perhaps Tony was a little too nice of a person? I hadn't realised that when he asked me questions about myself that he had been trying to find out about me. I had always assumed it was small talk, and granted, at the time I hadn't known he had actually worked for a drug lord. It occurred to me that I had no idea how powerful this drug lord was. I smiled, I had already fooled this man into giving me his name, plus I knew half of the drug lord's name already. Martinez. I had to make sure that I didn't become too overconfident just because of the death note.

After all, Martinez wouldn't have sent Vincent here to tell me Tony had died because I had known him for a while. It sounded too kind for a drug lord. Maybe they still wanted me as a client so they alerted me to a change in who would be selling to me. I couldn't imagine this Martinez guy being incredibly powerful if he depended on the money of a school student.

There was also the fact that although Tony's drugs went missing the value of it all couldn't have exceeded five hundred dollars. So even if they found out the drugs had been stolen, why would they care?

"The reason I came to tell you Tony died was because Martinez thinks one of his clients forced him to take drugs which killed him and stole everything he had on him at the time."

I stopped. Vincent kept walking for a few more steps but then stopped as well when he had noticed I wasn't next to him. He turned to face me.

"Are you suspecting me?" I asked, a laugh in my voice. His expression never changed, and the way he looked at me. _He does suspect me_. I couldn't keep the fear off my face. "I'm a student!" I exclaimed.

"Tony was said to have died from a drug overdose, but he hated marijuana. He never took drugs he only sold them. Tony was very meticulous with his work so that it was borderline obsessive. He met his regular clients weekly to sell to them. We sent stand-ins to each one of Tony's clients last week, but of all of them you were the only one who didn't bother to show up.

"Even though you, like Tony, had never missed a meeting, ever. Tony died straight after he sold to you over a week ago, but when he was found dead he didn't have your money with him. In fact, he had no money on him. This kind of punches a hole through the idea that he died from something like a drug overdose. What's even more suspicious is that even after I told you Tony had died you didn't even ask me how it had happened, like you didn't care."

_Damn!_ I didn't say anything at first. I had never believed that I could have been found out like this. The more Vincent spoke the more it made sense that I was the killer. I had to play dumb, at least for a little while longer. If Vincent convinced himself any more that I had killed Tony Macmullen he might just end up forcibly taking me to Martinez. I have to kill him, and then I have to get home and find Gallu. Then I'd need to start dealing with this drug lord.

**Jack has become acquainted with the Shinigami Gallu, and now he's found himself in a spot of trouble! How will this play out? Review?**


	4. Assassination

**My great appreciation and thanks to Professional Amateur and HaiJu for leaving such wonderfully long and insightful reviews! I hope you got to see the end of my story.**

Jack:

"I missed a meeting with Tony, is that what you're saying?" He narrowed his eyes, it looked like he suspected I was playing dumb.

"Tony may have looked skinny, but he was a black belt in karate. I don't like the idea that someone like him was overpowered and murdered by a punk that still goes to school, either. Martinez however is desperate to find out if someone killed Tony. They were good friends before he died."

"It's quite sad that Tony died and I can assure you I had nothing to do with it. I saw Tony leave with his bag of drugs and the money I gave him." I pulled off my bag and unzipped it, I started fishing around with my hand for the death note. "As to why I didn't make it to our meeting, I had to attend a relative's birthday party.

"I had actually told Tony that on our last meeting, and that I wouldn't bother rescheduling for that week because I was going to see other sellers anyway." My hand closed around the death note in my bag.

"What are you doing?" Vincent demanded. I realised he was staring anxiously at my hidden arm, maybe he thought I might be concealing a weapon?

"Just getting my diary." I told him.

"You have a diary that you bring to school?"

"It's a school diary. It has dates on it that I use to record due days on assignments and homework. I also put down meetings I had with Tony in here. For obvious reasons I always wrote 'library' and then the time I was meeting him next to it."

I pulled a pen out of my pencil case while my arm was still concealed. Vincent didn't say anything but kept watching me cautiously. I pulled out the death note and flicked through to the page I had used last. Making sure Vincent didn't see that none of the pages had dates on it, I went to the space directly below where I had written Tony's name a week ago.

I tried to fight back the evil grin that was trying to break free onto my face. "I'd still like to buy drugs from Martinez, even if I'd be buying from someone other than Tony. The same time a week would be convenient. I'll just pencil it in for next Wednesday shall I?"

I wrote in the notebook: _'Vincent Lawry_'.

"Why does your school diary have 'Death Note' written on it?" In my attempt to keep Vincent from seeing the pages he'd been staring at the cover instead. I allowed the grin to spread across my face.

"I didn't buy it from school, I bought it in a book store because I thought it looked cool. It's still a diary."

He stared searchingly into my face. He didn't understand the sudden manic look of anticipation on it. I realised I probably looked more like a killer now more than ever. "Say, Vincent?" I asked and his eyes narrowed suspiciously again at the tone of my voice. "Do you know what the time is?"

I didn't keep a watch on me but I could see a rather expensive looking one on the wrist of Vincent's left hand. He paused for a moment but then looked at his watch.

"3:04." My eyes were wide as I tried to see any sign of an oncoming heart attack on Vincent's face. If I were to be nice I probably should have at least wrote 'dies painlessly' as the cause of death, but I didn't really care at the moment.

Surely at any moment now, Vincent would collapse. "I've got an idea of how we can both leave here satisfied."

My eyes widened again but not in anticipation this time as Vincent spoke. "You are after all just a kid, even if you are tall for your age. I really don't think you could have killed someone like Tony by forcing him to overdose on drugs.

"He always seemed really averted to using drugs, but I guess you never know anyone completely except for yourself. If you show me where you've written down 'birthday party' instead of 'library' on the day you didn't go to meet with Tony I'll tell Martinez it wasn't you who killed him.

"I really don't think anyone could act as well as you had when I told you that you were suspected for killing one of our sellers. I also don't think you would have written 'birthday party' anticipating this conversation. If I can see that written down on the proper date I'll let you go, otherwise you're going to have to come with me for a little while, I'll take you to Martinez so he can talk to you.

My car is parked a few streets ahead. So can I see that diary?"

"What's the time?"

"Pardon?"

"What's the time?!" I yelled staring at Vincent's name on the death note. He looked a little offended at how I had yelled at him.

"You asked only a minute ago and I told you?"

"What is the time _now_." I said. Vincent looked at his watch again.

"Now it's 3:05." He said a little impatiently.

"Is 'Vincent Lowry' your real name?" He looked at me surprised, his confusion growing as he examined my terrified behaviour.

"Vincent Lowery is my real name." He said again. It was subtle, but there was a vowel sound after the 'w' I hadn't picked up on before. That was all it was, I had forgotten the 'e' after the 'w' in his name. I sighed with relief.

"What the hell's the matter with you?" he asked. I moved my pen to the death note again but stopped when I thought of something.

"Actually," I said in a different voice. "I'd like to meet Martinez. I think it's best I be there to clear up any confusion. All I need is to drop my bag at my house and leave a note for when my parents get home."

"Then you wouldn't mind if I drove you home in case you decided to disappear on me?"

"That won't be a problem at all." I smiled as I started walking again with Vincent. If Vincent were to die with me it would make me look even guiltier to Martinez. What I needed to do was see Gallu when I got home, I needed to ask him a few things. Also I needed to make the eye deal. It was the only way to find out the name of Martinez when I saw him as well as all of his other workers.

I needed to make sure that all of them died, after that no one would investigate me about Tony's death any more. I wasn't happy that I'd have to give up half of my remaining life but at least if I had those eyes I could kill anyone at any time. The next person to die would be the previous owner of the death note. After that, I would instigate a plan to get me as much money as possible so I could live the remainder of my life peaceful and happy.

We approached Vincent's car, it was maroon and unattractive. I hopped into the passenger's side and put my bag in my lap. I put the death note in my bag but put the pen in my pocket. Vincent opened his door and sat in the driver's seat. I told him where I lived and Vincent didn't seem to suspect that I'd run away, probably because he assumed that if he knew where I lived I'd have to go back there eventually.

We drove mostly in silence. Vincent had asked if my parents knew I used drugs. I told him _hell no_. It wasn't a far drive from the bus stop to my house. When I got out it occurred to me that if Gallu wasn't home I would simply have to kill Vincent and then wait for another one of Martinez's workers to take me to him, although I hoped that it wouldn't come to that. "I need to use the toilet as well so I'll be a little longer."

"Leave the front door unlocked. If you take longer than five minutes I'm coming inside and waiting for you there." Vincent told me. I nodded and then headed inside. When I walked in I could hear the television on quietly even though there was no one home.

"Oh hello Jack, you're home early." Gallu appeared around the corner.

"Only slightly, but I have something more important to talk to you about. I want to make the deal." Gallu looked surprised, his eyes and mouth opening wider being the only indication.

"Really? What changed your mind? I thought you were only going to make the deal if it was your last option and you absolutely had to? Is it because of that previous owner?"

"It's not him but it is my last option. I killed a drug dealer with the death note and that dealer's boss thinks it was me. I'm being taken to see him now so I need to know his name so I can end this once and for all." Gallu's features twisted upwards in an unmistakable smile.

"How interesting. I'll definitely be coming with you, I wouldn't miss this for all the TV in the world!'

"First the deal. You said it would be painless, right?"

"Of course, but you will feel something weird. Just stand still for a few seconds and you'll have the same eyes as every other Shinigami." My heart hammered in my chest. Gallu reached out with his long scaly arm and placed his hand over my eyes. A second passed. Gallu moved his arm away.

Everything looked the same to me. "I didn't feel anything, Gallu are you sure it worked?" Gallu was looking at me strangely.

"How very unfortunate."

"What? What is it?" I demanded impatiently. Gallu tilted his head curiously.

"I can't do the deal with you."

"Why not?" I said angrily.

"Because you are not the owner of the death note. The owner is that other boy you wanted to kill. There's a rule that says if you lend the death note to someone they can make the eye deal even if they don't own the death note, but it wasn't lent to you, you stole it. That means I shouldn't even be here now, I should be with the other boy. Shame too, I was just starting to like you, Jack."

"That's impossible!" I snarled. "He threw the death note away! He gave up ownership of it!"

"There are only three ways that the ownership of that death note can be changed to you. First way, if that boy fails to retrieve the death note from you in 490 days it will become yours."

"That's in over a year! What's the second way?" I demanded.

"The second way is to get him to relinquish his ownership of the death note to you." I scowled.

"Stop messing with me, Gallu! If I were to do that I'd have to reveal to him that I had the death note and then say something like 'can you pretty please say that it's mine now?' It's not going to work! What is the last way?"

"The third way," Gallu laughed. "Is to kill him." My eyes widened.

"If I killed him the death note would be mine, and then I'd be able to accept the Shinigami eye deal?"

"If that boy dies the ownership will be passed onto whoever is holding the death note at the time, yes.

"Also, another interesting thing I should tell you that you probably don't already know: since you don't actually own the death note if you were to give it to someone else or lose possession of it for even just a moment, all of your memories of you using the notebook will disappear until you come back into contact with the death note."

Gallu laughed again. My eyes widened in realization. I remembered Vincent asking if he could read what I had written in it. Even if it had been for a split second, if he had taken the notebook off me I would forget that I had a way to kill the dealers after me. I would have probably tried to run from him right there and then.

In fact, I would have forgotten that I had even killed Tony.

"So what are you going to do now?" Gallu asked me. I walked into the living room and sat on an arm chair. I picked up the remote next to me and flicked the TV off.

Vincent would be walking in here soon to see what was taking me so long. If I tried to run out the back and go to school, where I could try to find out what that boys name was I could kill him and then return. It would take too long to get back to school, especially without the bus. Vincent would catch me if I was running because he's using a car.

Even if I killed the previous owner and then found Vincent again how could I explain to him my disappearance? I couldn't. He wouldn't trust me anymore. I had to kill Vincent first. Originally I was going to ask Gallu if pages torn from the notebook would still work to see if I could use it to make Vincent kill Martinez and everyone else working for him.

That wouldn't work though now, in the rules of the death note it says that if I write a cause of death that results in the deaths of others whose names aren't written in the notebook the person will simply die of a heart attack. I didn't want Vincent to die while he was parked in my driveway. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my mobile.

I went into the bathroom and locked the door. If Vincent walked in and saw me on the phone he might think I was calling the police. In fact I was calling someone very different. I looked up my contacts list until I found Emma. I pressed the 'call' button and waited while I heard it ringing.

Gallu's head passed through the door as he looked in and watched me on the phone. I'd have to talk to him about privacy later.

"Hello?" It was Emma's voice.

"Emma, it's me." I replied. She should have my name under caller ID.

"Oh right, hey Jack. What's up?" I tried to hide the urgency in my voice.

"Are you at home right now?" I asked her.

"No, why?"

"So you don't have your school photos on you?" I asked getting annoyed.

"Of course not."

"There's a boy who goes to our school and is in our year. He has black hair and wears thick black glasses. What is his name?"

"I know him, he's in my Maths class. Why is he so important?"

"I need you to tell me his name." I said firmly. She paused on the other end of the line. "Ethan something. I don't talk to him often."

"What is his last name?" I asked urgently.

"I don't know. What's going on? You're acting different."

"I'm fine. Just tell me where you are."

"I'm driving. I'll be home in fifteen minutes." I cursed.

"I need you to do something for me. When you get home can you please find out his name and then text me it immediately? Make sure you spell it right. I'll explain everything to you later, I promise."

"Jack if you don't tell me what's going on right now, I swear-"

"See you in school." Then I hung up. I didn't have anyone else's phone number from school so Emma was all I had. I still wasn't sure I could depend on her. I couldn't get her to do things for me even when it wasn't important. So what will she do now?

I was partially surprised that she didn't call back to berate me about how I had talked to her. I hoped she would do as I asked. Swearing loudly I threw my phone at the ground. Luckily, being a Nokia, I knew it would be unaffected.

I started leaning with both of my hands on the sink and looked up at my reflection. Under my short, spiked brown hair my brown eyes seethed in a ring of purplish skin. Somehow I had to kill Martinez and his other workers without knowing their names. Unless Emma got back to me with Ethan's full name. Then I could kill him, become the owner of the death note, make the deal with Gallu and then kill everyone I see with the torn off page of the death note I'd keep with my pen in my pocket.

Gallu's head disappeared through the door and then reappeared a moment later.

"Someone's in the house." he said. I closed my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose. Then I opened them again.

"Listen close, Gallu. I have a plan and I need you to do exactly as I say in order for it to work."

Vincent:

I reached out and took the death note. Instantly I noticed Jack's face become blank, and then frightened.

"Thank you for giving me this." I told him. "I will leave you alone now. I'm well aware that a school student like you couldn't possibly have killed Tony."

Jack still stared at me worriedly.

"Ok. Thanks." I nodded and then left him.

I closed the door behind me and walked towards my car. A red demon creature with bat wings landed next to me. For some reason this didn't frighten me in the slightest.

"Are you the Shinigami of this notebook?" I asked and he laughed.

"Yes I am. My name's Gallu," the creature replied. "I don't know if this little plan of Jack's will work or not, but I'm going to stick around and see what happens."

"Very well." I said and then opened my car door. I turned the key in the ignition and then drove off, Gallu flying above me. The death note was on the seat next to me as I drove, I stared at it. Jack had explained everything to me in great detail, and I would obey all of his instructions. The car drove off into the evening sun.

Two hours later I was in a town called Warwick. It was dark, I parked my car on the street by an old house. I undid my seat belt and opened my car door. I put on my brown leather jacket to keep out the cold, and concealed the death note inside.

I closed the door and locked the car. I walked up the footpath past a white car and then up the driveway of the house. There was noise coming from inside. I opened the door and saw Donald and the boys playing cards on a small table.

"Hey Donnie." Donald was a nice guy, it was a real shame that I had to kill him.

"Hey Vince. What the hell are you doing here? I thought the boss told you to pick up some kid?" I looked around. I didn't know who would be in charge of staying here for the night to guard the supply. I knew Donald's full name but he had three other people here, against the boss's wishes probably, to play cards with.

I only vaguely recalled some of their names.

"No, turns out the kid's innocent. Had an alibi, he didn't seem the killer type, either."

"Well you're going to have to explain that one to the boss, he's pretty sure that someone got Tony, so he's out for blood."

"Yes, but before we go any further, I should introduce myself to your friends. My name is Vincent Lawery. My friends just call me Vince."

I shook each of their hands and each one of them gave me their full name. I then excused myself and headed for the bathroom. Once inside I took the death note out from under my jacket and an expensive looking pen I used for writing.

_Eric Donald. Cause of death: Car Accident. Circumstances of Death: Decides to go joyriding with friends along the streets of Warwick. After one hour of driving he and all of his passengers die from colliding at high speed with a large tree._

_James Burnley. Cause of death: Car Accident._

_Samuel Evans. Cause of death: Car Accident._

_Michel Stone. Cause of death: Car Accident._

I heard wicked laughter from behind me and didn't need to turn around to know it was Gallu that was reading over my shoulder. Jack had told me to try not to be too specific with the death note in case I made a mistake. He also said that if someone's death would cause more people to die whose names weren't in the notebook that person would simply die of a heart attack, so I had figured out the names of Donnie's friends. _Now all I have to do is wait forty seconds and then my real mission will begin._

**What mission has Jack left Vincent? Will his master plan be enough to save him from the powerful drug lord? Review?**


	5. Plan

**Vincent carries on with the rest of Jack's plan. Will he be successful in whatever Jack has left him to do?**

Vincent:

I exited the bathroom when I heard someone exclaim from the other room. When I walked over to the front room I saw the door swing closed. Donald and two of his friends were heading out to his car and their deaths. The one called Michel was yelling after them.

"What are you doing? The boss said you have to stay here and call if anything happens!"

When he noticed me he looked a little relieved. "Vincent, isn't it? Help me! They just mumbled something about joy riding and then got up and left!"

"Must have spelt his name wrong." Gallu said from behind me. "Be careful, if you accidentally spell someone's name incorrectly four times the death note will be rendered useless."

_How do I spell Michel's name?_ Was it Michael with an 'a' or Michelle with a double 'l'?

"A small oversight." I told Gallu.

"What?" Michel asked me, looking perplexed. I knew that there was a chance I might not know how to spell someone's name, so I specifically didn't write the number of people Donnie would be driving with.

If I had said 'with three other people' and spelt Michel's name wrong Donnie would have ended up dead from a heart attack and I would have had to hide his body and try to silence Michel at the same time.

"Michel, how do you spell your first name?" He stared at me as if I had gone crazy.

"Why does this matter now?" He yelled. Seeing no other option I left the room and headed into Martinez's empty office. Going to the desk, I opened the first drawer and pulled out a revolver. I loaded it with bullets and then added the silencer. Michel barely had time to yell before I painted the wall behind him in his blood.

There was no point hiding his body because of all the blood. I shot him three times to make sure he was dead. I looked through the front door and noticed the car parked in the driveway was gone. I needed to hurry before anyone else came to this house.

I walked out of the room and past the open door to the office and found the familiar brown door. I wondered which one of the two things Jack told me to do I should do first. Jack had not been absolutely specific about every single detail because he trusted that I could figure it out on my own.

I would not let him down because he was counting on me. I should either go through here or move along to the storeroom where Martinez kept the supply. Deciding I should probably make sure no one interrupted me first I entered through the brown wooden door. Inside were filing cabinets. Several of them lined the wall and in between them was a small desk and chair with a computer situated on top.

Walking over to a specific cabinet I opened the second drawer and skipped through until I found what I was looking for. Anyone found in this room without Martinez's permission and strict surveillance would be in major trouble. If he saw me with this file he would most certainly have me killed.

In my hands I held the file that contained the names and pictures of every client and worker who was currently working for Martinez. The list held over a hundred names and photos. Gallu passed through the wall and approached.

"That was quite a messy way of killing someone. If a Shinigami kills a human in ways other than a death note they can get in major trouble with the Shinigami king."

"Believe me Gallu, humans are capable of doing far worse and disgusting things to each other." I sat on the chair of the small desk and opened the death note. I pulled out my pen and placed the sheet of names next to the open book so that I could read them.

"Oh!" Gallu exclaimed. "Are you going to kill all of those people?"

"I have no choice, I must do as Jack has asked me."

"I knew that Jack told you to find and write down all the names of people who were in contact with Martinez in the death note, but I had no idea that you would have to kill this many. Won't it look suspicious?"

"It will definitely be suspicious." I told Gallu. "However with all people linked to Martinez gone no one will be able to find reason to suspect Jack. I'm going to have to write down different causes of death for each of them and make it so that most bodies aren't found until months later so that the police can't find any similarities in their deaths."

Gallu gave another one of his sinister laughs. "It's funny, but I think you might become the first human to write this many names in the death note in a long time."

"I suppose." I then picked up my pen and started writing.

. . .

One hour later I was driving back to Brisbane. In the distance I could see smoke from my rear view mirror of the stake house setting alight. The last thing Jack had told me was to burn down everything. If someone found that list and saw that everyone on it had mysteriously died except for him it would have been bad news for Jack indeed.

There sure was a lot of marijuana that was being grown and kept in the storeroom, but Jack had specified that I only load the back of my car and leave everything else behind to burn. It would erase all evidence of my presence there, except for the bullets in Michael's head and chest (I had ended up seeing how to spell his first name on Martinez's list).

At least it would erase the fact that forty kilograms of Marijuana had been taken. Jonathan Martinez was the last name I had written down, his name wasn't on the list but I saw it scribbled across a few pages in his desk. For his death I stated that he would drown in a river and that his body would not be discovered until June of next year.

Everything had been taken care of. I had followed all of Jack's instructions and completed his mission perfectly. All that was left was for me to hide this stash of drugs in a place no one would ever find it and then go to Jack and give him the death note so that his memories would return.

Gallu:

Watching the human drive his car back to Brisbane I thought that perhaps being stuck here for a while wouldn't be as boring as I had first thought. I had to admit that I was impressed with Jack's plan. It had worked perfectly.

He had written Vincent Lowery's name in the death note and in the details of death he had written that he would die in one week's time, he had also written that before that time he would be completely obedient to the first person he saw and do whatever they told him without question.

Jack had made sure not to write his own name lest he die but instead made sure he was the first person Vincent saw after his name was written in the death note. After doing that Vincent had no choice but to obey him. Jack then went on to describe his plan to Vincent in mind-numbing detail, Vincent, however, obeyed and was happy to do whatever Jack had said.

The fortunate thing about the death note is that Jack didn't have to think of everything but could leave a lot of it up to Vincent to do instead. As long as it is within the realistic areas of possibility the death note can make people do anything the writer wants.

Jack had no idea that Martinez had a list of all of his employees and he also had no idea where Martinez kept his drugs. However, with the power of the death note he was able to make Vincent come up with it on his own in order to do what he was told. Jack willingly gave up his memories so that Vincent could use the death note to kill all of those people for him.

When Vincent returned and gave the death note back to Jack as per instructed all of his memories would return. I doubted that even Jack himself had suspected that things would of worked out this well, and he hadn't even needed to exchange half of his remaining life for the Shinigami eyes.

As I sailed across the night sky above the road and next to the roaring engine of Vincent's car I couldn't help smiling. It had been a lot of fun watching Vincent kill all of those people. Now all that was left was for Jack to eliminate the previous owner of the death note and then it would become his. I couldn't wait.

Jack:

I was extremely relieved that I was no longer suspected by Vincent to be the killer of Tony. Hopefully now this drug lord would stop sending people after me. Deep down I hoped that they would find the killer, if there was one. It seemed more than likely, however, that Tony had ended up dying from a drug overdose.

He had been cheap and did rip me off on occasion, but he was always nice and never missed any of our meetings. I was thoroughly perplexed as to why I had told Vincent that I had missed our last meeting because I had gone to a relative's birthday party. I had stayed home that day.

To be honest, I had no idea why I hadn't gone to see Tony that day. Had I forgotten? It was definitely weird. I was mostly relieved that I wouldn't be getting any more unwelcome visits from strange criminal men. That's what I had assumed until I had seen the ugly maroon car pull up in the driveway.

I was considering threatening to call the cops, but I didn't want them and my parents to know that I regularly took illegal substances. Figuring that my parents would be arriving home soon, I decided I should go see him now and quickly. Afterwards I would politely but firmly insist that he never stop by here again.

There was knocking on the door and I could see Vincent through the glazed window in the door. I walked over and then hesitantly opened it. Vincent was smiling kindly at me. It was quite strange, he had been so serious and cold when he had talked to me about Tony's death, but that had all changed after...

"Here." he held out the death note to me. "I was just returning this to you." I stared at him incredulously. He came to return the stupid book? Is this guy insane?

"It's okay," I told him. "You can keep it or throw it away or whatever. I found it lying around somewhere and picked it up because it looked cool. It's just a piece of junk, though. Someone's idea of a joke."

"Actually I found what was inside this to be very useful." Vincent told me. "It has conclusive evidence that you didn't kill Tony Macmullen." I couldn't read his expression, he was just smiling weirdly.

"Really?" I asked sceptically.

"Definitely, open it and see for yourself." I hesitated and then reached out and took the death note.

I screamed as memories started flooding into my mind. I saw myself writing Tony's name in the death note and then watching him walk off to his death, after forcing him to leave his drugs and money in the public toilets for me to collect. I saw myself write down Joel Robinson's name and making him die in front of the school assembly, revenge for all the times he had picked on people smaller than him.

Most importantly, I saw myself writing down Vincent Lawery's name and telling him to kill Martinez and all of his workers as well as robbing him of as much drugs as could fit in Vincent's car. I was leaned over and panting heavily as I re-evaluated my current situation.

"So now that you have the death note I can stop hiding, right?" Gallu said as he flew off the roof and landed on the ground behind Vincent.

I remembered telling Gallu to follow Vincent so that I wouldn't freak out and run when I saw him after I had lost my memories. I would have only given Vincent a page of the death note but the stubborn Shinigami insisted on being where the notebook was, and I needed someone to report back to me and explain everything if Vincent died.

I looked up at Vincent, he had a slightly glazed look in his eyes and I realised that his memories of using the death note would have vanished once he had given it back to me. So instead of asking him how things had gone I opened the death note and flicked through. Vincent had filled up several pages with names of everyone that was connected to Martinez.

He had been smart enough to also write different details of death for every person he killed so that it couldn't be linked back to me. A wicked grin curved up my face when I saw Jonathan Martinez's name written in the book. I had even managed to kill a powerful drug lord and everyone who worked for him, was there anything that this notebook could not accomplish for me?

It was over. No one would investigate me about the death of Tony Macmullen anymore.

"Did you get me the drugs that I asked for?" Vincent swayed and then looked at me, remembering.

"Yes." he said. "Forty kilograms of wrapped weed is hidden deep in the old sewage pipe that comes out at Bribie Island. Not too far along the freeway."

"What else do you remember?" I asked him. Vincent thought and his glazed eyes drifted upwards. Even if he didn't remember writing in the death note he still had to obey me because of what I had written.

"I shot someone." He said absent-mindedly. "Then I burnt the place down with all the marijuana. So much of it...just went up in smoke."

"Good job, Vincent." I smiled. "You've done very well. Only now I no longer have a use for you. I didn't expect for everything to be dealt with right away which was why I specified for you to die in a week. I had assumed I would need to use you again. Now that I don't there is no longer a need for me to keep you alive for an entire week."

Vincent continued to sway. "Get back into your car and drive. Keep driving. Drive for hours until you find yourself near the coast. Then I want you to drive off a cliff." Vincent's eyes unglazed. He stared at me like he had been jolted by something. He looked like he wanted to understand what I'd said but like he couldn't grasp it. He only looked at me for a few seconds and then without a word he turned, got into his car and drove away.

As I saw Vincent's car disappear my grin returned. All that remained was for me to uncover Ethan's full name. I was quite unhappy that Emma had decided not to send me Ethan's full name when she had arrived at her house. I would have to uncover it on my own. It shouldn't be too hard now that I know his first name. I turned to Gallu who had been watching quietly.

"We should go inside now."

Ethan:

People were dying. According to the newspaper a drug lord had been discovered after his stash had been burnt down along with the building it was contained in. Almost one million dollars worth of Cannabis had been destroyed, also about ten people suspected of being that drug lord's workers all died in the same night.

All of the other suspected workers including the drug lord himself had vanished on said night. It had to be the death note. Whoever had it was killing drug lords. For what reason? Were they trying to see themselves as a vigilante by killing criminals? Or did they use the fire as a way of stealing drugs without getting noticed?

I fiddled with my glasses nervously as I sat in my room, pondering. It had been over two weeks since Joel had died. Whoever had the death note had still not killed me or they still didn't know my name. It shouldn't be too hard for them to figure out my name considering we both went to the same school.

This person probably didn't consider me enough of a threat to do away with. I had already wrote a letter explaining everything about the death note and what I knew that I had stashed away in one of my drawers so that if I did die, at least there might be someone who would look into my death. That would only help someone find the death note after I died.

What I needed to do was find the death note before I died. I needed to try to tempt this killer into a trap. I needed to make him/her think that I had slipped up and left my name somewhere and then catch them when they tried to uncover it. It was for now, my only plan to catch whoever was using the death note.

I had never actually read all of the rules of the death note when I had it. I had only read the first page in the instructions. If I had taken the time to go through it I would have had a better idea of what my enemy was capable of.

Ever since the death of Joel Robinson I had been monitoring local newspapers and news reports for any instances of peculiar deaths. I had discovered that no one within a three hundred kilometre radius had died of a heart attack since Reece Caldon. So if this person was still killing, they were writing down specific instructions about the deaths.

Why? Either they were sick enough to get a thrill from playing God by picking random ways for their victims to die, or, they were smarter than that and were trying to make sure that the deaths were flying under the radar. Specifically so I wouldn't notice, or the police?

I remembered the last rule on the first page of the death note concerning details of the deaths. If time counted as one of those details this killer could murder people and make it even less suspicious by choosing their deaths to be at a later date. They could kill people years into the future.

Another important reason as to why I was monitoring deaths was because I wanted to find out who this second person with the death note was killing in order to get a better idea of who he or she was. Thanks to the internet I was able to check obituaries and information about local deaths that were released in the media. There were a few deaths since the weeks after Joel's death.

None of them particularly screamed 'death note' at me, other than the death of the workers of the drug lord, and the disappearance of Jonathan Martinez himself. Now that I thought about it, there had been one instance of a drug overdose that had killed one man. I remembered it because in the media it had been said that it was very unusual for someone to die from an overdose on cannabis.

The article then went on to say things like 'you never really know' and 'children must be informed of the risks' and blah blah blah. It's a stretch, but if this killer was connected to Tony Macmullen's death then they seem to be someone who is related to drugs somehow, particularly cannabis considering almost a million dollars of it was burnt down along with the drug lord's hideout.

This person either took drugs regularly, considering a drug lord was targeted, or they had a strong aversion to the usage of drugs. The last version seemed less likely considering there are much worse and dangerous drugs out there then marijuana, which connects the two incidents. I wondered if I could use this information to help me uncover the identity of this killer.

I wasn't finished yet, there was no way I would simply wait for this person to kill me. I had spent these weeks preparing and planning and now it was time for me to put my plan into motion. I was going to find out who was in possession of the death note, even if it was the last thing I did.

. . .

The next day at school was an assembly day. I made sure to sit as far back as I could but I still had to sit in my roll call line. Ever since Joel Robinson had died there had been annoying talks in assemblies as well as invitations to see the school councillor if anyone felt the need. The entirety of Year 11 had witnessed his death and by now the entire school knew of it.

This assembly was different because it was a whole school assembly. The principle, Mrs. Mirsky stared strictly at the students as they all entered. She was at the front on the slightly elevated stage for speakers. Around her were other members of the faculty and staff.

When all students were seated on the floor in columns based on their year and rows based on their roll call group, next to their roll teachers, the teachers remained silent for a bit until the noise died down. Mrs. Mirsky was dressed in a maroon dress that was wrapped in a purple cardigan. It seemed she always wore those colours. Even her high heels were a violent shade of pink.

Her brown hair that curtained her face was speckled with silver and her wrinkled face was shaped into a definite frown. She never looked this angry. Something serious must be going on.

That would explain why the Year 10s and 12s were here as well.

Instead of the principle it was Mr. Harris who walked forward to address the campus.

"We have brought you all here because we have something very serious to announce. It concerns the amount of vandalism and inappropriate letters that the school has been getting from someone at this school."

I could sense that, for once, most students were actually interested in what the teachers were saying this assembly. Perfect! Now even if the killer isn't in Year 11, he will still hear this message. I need to look around to see if anyone reacts to what Mr. Harris says next.

There had been vandalisms at the school of graffiti saying heinous things about the incident of Joel's death. I knew all about them, because I had been the one that had done it. Over the last few weeks I had been using spray cans I had purchased with the limited money I was allowed, and writing messages in private areas.

Even if I couldn't use spray cans I used markers and everything I had at my disposal to make a mess. I didn't agree with everything I had written but the point was to attract attention from the teachers. I made sure no one noticed me doing it, and signed every vandalism with the name '_shadow_'.

I said things like 'Joel had deserved to die' and recently, had sent letters to the school. Each one was filled with profanities and accusations, but most importantly, in each letter I mentioned past vandalisms and talked about possible future ones. They weren't too extreme, but I referred to each graffiti message I had made as a 'death notice'.

This was an extreme way to get the killer's attention, but I knew that they would have to reveal themselves. If they were smart, they would realise that soon the school would be forced to contact the police. Instead of the school trying to ignore the letters, the police would analyse them carefully.

After I was sure that my letters were being paid attention to, I could start to write even more serious things concerning the death note and about Joel Robinson's death. This killer would want me dead immediately. That's what I'm counting on. The first part of my plan is already in effect, the second part will be trying to find out who is in possession of the death note.

**Jack has overcome his major problem, but what's this? Finally Ethan has devised a scheme of his own to lure out the death note. It's _shadow_ vs _killer_. Review?**


	6. Confrontation

**Will Ethan's plan work? Or will he be killed by Jack? It's in the hands of destiny now.**

Ethan:

Mr. Harris was loathed by most students in the school. He was a small man who always wore business suits to school, even when the other teachers dressed casually. He loved the idea of heading assemblies and looking important. He had no hair and his head shined as if it had been waxed.

Either that or he was constantly perspiring. As he addressed the student body I could tell that there was another emotion he had in place of his usual arrogance. Behind the anger and disapproval there was something else: fear.

He and all the other teachers didn't know how to deal with this situation. It was clear that whoever was doing this was not just a stupid kid who wanted attention. It was a smart kid who wanted to create chaos. Why else had this student not been caught after so much horrific vandalisms?

I wouldn't be surprised if they had already contacted the police. If they had it would be most likely that only a few policemen would come, make a big show of walking around the school just to get noticed. They would then hope that Shadow would be frightened and stop writing messages. If my messages were received it wouldn't be necessary for me to continue anyway.

It will appear that Shadow was scared off by the police. That's exactly what I need. I don't want them to catch me and make things difficult. If I got caught they'd announce my full name and that would be a disaster. The killer would write my name in the death note. Game over.

What I needed to do was look around to see if anyone makes a reaction to the code word I put in the letters. Mr. Harris stared out at the students. They all knew that someone in here was responsible for the vandalisms. I wonder if they would be smart enough to figure out who.

"The police have been called and will be arriving here shortly. Whoever is calling themselves Shadow has been doing the wrong thing. It's pathetic and sick!" He said viciously. _As if he'd be able to evoke a reaction from me so easily. How disappointing_.

"We'd also like to ask for anyone who knows anything to come forward. My office is always open. As for this menace defacing the school, if you come forward now your punishment will be much less than what it will be if we catch you, and we will catch you if you continue." _Now they're trying to scare me into confessing? This is just getting ridiculous_.

"These vandalisms against the school will not be tolerated. As for the messages concerning the death of Joel Robinson, these cruel, beastly-" _he's quite descriptive_ "-messages or whatever you call them; death notices-" I immediately scanned the area. Time seemed to cease. There were hundreds of faces around me. All of them looking forward.

They were of peaking interest, but the expression I was really looking for was shock, fear, suspicion. _Did I imagine that sound? A gasp? A sharp intake of breath? Were other people going to look at who had made the sudden noise? Would their heads point me to him/her?_

With the faint sound alone I couldn't determine gender. Several heads somewhere behind me turned to where the noise was louder. _Over there. The killer was in that direction_. If I stood now while only a few seconds of time had passed I might be able to make out one of those three expressions.

I couldn't though, it would be like announcing that I'm Shadow. The killer would try even harder to find my name. They'd know my plan. The turned heads were from the Year 11 group. _As I thought_. Nobody else noticed them. _Do I risk it? Do I stand up and look at him/her?_ The desire was almost overpowering, but I forced myself to remain seated.

"-are extremely inappropriate and need to stop right now! That is all." Mr. Harris concluded. Mrs. Mirsky walked forward.

"You may leave now. Roll call teachers please escort your classes out of the hall. One at a time." People got up to leave, whispering excitedly or complaining about getting up. When Mrs. Lee told us to stand we did.

I walked with a triumphant smile on my face. _I bet you won't be ignoring me any more now will you, killer?_ I thought to myself. _I guess I'm smarter than you gave me credit. You won't make the same mistake again. I've backed you into a corner. You'll have to retaliate, and in your desperation you'll slip up, and I'll catch you. The death note will once again be mine, and I'll kill you with it if I have to._

Jack:

_He's smart!_ I had no idea that Ethan was so much like me. _Is it really possible he planned this far ahead?_ My teeth ground together. _You bastard!_ I thought savagely as I walked with my roll call class. _I could have left you alone but because you asked for it, I'll kill you!_ _If I left him alone then he could give away more information about the death note, and that I could not allow!_

In assembly several people had turned to face me when I had gasped. I didn't see Ethan's face, but I couldn't be sure. No, if Ethan had seen me he would have approached me or be following me now. He couldn't risk the chance that I be alone, in case I already knew his name. Then I'd just write down his name in the death note. I looked behind me. I couldn't see him.

I trailed back to the end of the line and then when I was sure my roll call teacher couldn't see me I hurried away. I headed back towards the hall. I studied the students as they left while I peeked from the side of the student toilet block. It wasn't too difficult to spot Ethan. He was just below average in height, thin and he probably needed a haircut.

Behind his thick black glasses his cheeks were pulled up in a smirk. _He thinks he's got me?_ I almost laughed out maniacally. _All I have to do is watch where he goes_. The roll call teachers were taking their classes back to the rooms where they normally had roll call.

While I was careful to hide myself I followed his class across the quadrangle outside of the hall. They were heading to the science block. I kept watching until I saw the roll call teacher, a middle-aged, rounded, Asian woman with glasses and a bright purple T-shirt, unlock the door with a key on a piece of string around her neck.

My eyes widened. On a plaque attached to the door was the word 'Lab 3'. My smile widened over my face. I would have to wait a day, but tomorrow Ethan would die. Unfortunately he wasn't smart enough. He'd led me himself to his own roll call room.

After roll is taken every morning on the roll sheet inside the folding clipboard, a student is picked to return the roll to the office. Next to each name was that student's school photo. I would volunteer to hand in the roll for my class early, then I would catch whoever left Lab 3 tomorrow with the roll and kindly offer to carry it the rest of the way.

I would finally know Ethan's full name. I only wished I had decided to do this sooner. _Enjoy your small victory now, for tomorrow is the last day of your life_. I turned and left, smiling, back to my roll call room.

Ethan:

The next day I sat in roll call quietly. My hands were together in front of me and I twiddled my thumbs idly. I was thinking hard about my situation. I was definitely taking a big risk, the biggest in my life.

I was fighting someone whose name I didn't know, whose face I haven't recognised and who has a notebook with the power to kill someone just by writing that person's name in it. This someone knew my face, and could kill me without making a big deal of it. All they needed was my name.

I realised that my entire plan relied on the fact that they didn't already have my name. There was a good chance that I could die soon, if I wasn't careful. I held my breath and tried to concentrate. After Mrs. Lee had finished roll call she handed the roll over to Billy, the small timid looking boy in my Environmental studies class. He left the room with the roll in his hand, and closed the door behind him.

Jack:

I saw someone leave from Lab 3. He looked smaller than Ethan and was thin like him too. He had light brown hair. I couldn't see what he looked like much from behind, but started to follow him. I decided I wouldn't approach him until he was inside the office and away from the windows of the Lab.

I needed a secluded place to kill Ethan with the death note in my bag. I watched as the boy walked quickly to the office past the science block. I couldn't help smiling. I hadn't ended up telling Gallu that I was going to kill someone today.

I knew that if I had he would have insisted on coming today, and I would have been unable to stop him. I couldn't risk Ethan seeing him before I killed him, considering he was the only other person that could see the Shinigami. The only other person who had touched his death note. So far no one had stopped me. _This was going to work! I was going to kill Ethan and then this marvellous notebook will finally become mine._

Hannah:

I drove my silver economy car haphazardly toward the school, cursing myself. Why did I have such a problem with punctuality when it came to school? I had been clearly warned by the deputy principle that if I came to school late one more time my parents would be called.

That would be aggravatingly inconvenient. My windows were up so no one could hear the deafening sound of Paramore's 'Misery Business'. The only song that band had made that I liked. I swerved my car to the side of the road.

I hopped out with my school things and locked the car. The school seemed empty, a horribly familiar scene that I usually witnessed after the school was well into first period. _Shit. I need to get another late note_. I groaned as I headed to the office, the first block inside the school gates.

I was not looking forward to another lecture by the receptionists inside. Maybe they'd let me off if I told them I'd missed the bus or something? I sighed as I walked through the school gates and approached the office.

Billy:

I walked inside the office and was about to walk over to the reception desk when I felt someone tap my back. I stopped and turned around. He was someone in my year, he was tall and had short spiked brown hair with brown eyes ringed with faint shades of purple.

"Give me that." He said. His tone was polite but insistent. I was momentarily taken aback by it and stared, frightened as usual, by social interaction with another teenager.

A blonde girl, also in my year, wearing black underneath her uniform and listening to an iPod, stopped by the entrance, which the tall boy was standing in.

"Excuse me," she mumbled and then pushed past him. He ignored her and held out his hand to me.

I realised he wanted the roll I was holding. I wanted to say to the towering figure that I was going to hand this in to the receptionist myself, but when the words didn't come out, I just held it out for him. He snatched it from me and something happened to his eyes. They looked deranged.

Inhuman. He shoved past me and started walking towards the staff toilets. He had his hand on the door handle but then the old lady talking to the blonde girl called out to him.

"Excuse me, those toilets are for staff members only! Use the student toilets instead, please."

The glare she received was terrifying. It made me feel uneasy in my stomach, even the receptionist gasped and the Year 11 girl's eyebrows rose. He turned on his heel and went to leave.

"What are you doing with that? Give it here!" She called, talking about the roll he had in his hand.

He kept walking, ignoring her, but then he stopped. Someone blocked his way. He stood and held the door open with one hand. His expression was determined but also had a confident smile spread across it. I had never seen Ethan with that expression before.

Ethan:

Jack stared wide eyed at me.

"No," he said quietly.

"Got you." I said with a smile. "Jack Martin." Unlike him I had my school photo album, and I looked at everyone's photo in my year. I had paid special attention to the students who apparently used drugs or at least looked like they did.

"You planned this?" He asked. The other boy, Billy, a blonde girl who I didn't know and the receptionist were looking back and forth at us.

"I knew that after you heard the word 'death notices' at the assembly you'd know it was because of me." I told him. "I suspected you'd follow me. I saw you from the corner of my eye. The temptation to look at you then was almost unbearable but I forced myself not to and to wait instead for this moment to look at you and see who you are."

Jack's eyes were wide while he listened to what I was saying. "I knew you would try to get my name from roll call at that moment! So I followed you!

"I excused myself and then I came here. It was my plan to figure out who had the death note and it worked!" I yelled triumphantly. "Jack Martin you are the killer I've been looking for!" Everyone except Jack and me looked completely dumbfounded.

Jack was looking down at his shoes. I had no idea what he was doing; _crying or laughing?_ He was growling strangely. He looked up again and his eyes terrified me. I thought for a moment that he might actually physically attack me.

"Knowing who I am and what I've done won't help you if you're dead!" He screamed and swung his bag around and off his back, he plunged his hand into his bag and pulled out a black notebook.

"Noooo!" I jumped and slammed my body into him.

He was bigger than me but I managed to make him lose his balance and he fell. I grabbed for the death note and he elbowed me in the face. I howled in pain. Jack then grabbed the notebook and went to get up but I grabbed his leg and he fell again. The receptionist screeched and then hurried off to find a teacher.

Jack had dropped the death note and was reaching for it. I crawled over and flicked it away across the carpet so that it was out of reach. He turned his blazing eyes to me and then grabbed my face in his arms, he then head butted and I saw stars. I heard Jack moan as well and I felt something warm spilling from my aching nose.

When my vision cleared I could see that Jack had gotten on his hands and knees and he was looking up at Billy who was at the other end of the room and reading the cover of the death note he held in his hands. For some reason this infuriated Jack even more.

"Give that to me!" he ordered. Billy froze.

"Don't!" I warned him. He looked too frightened to do anything other than just stare at Jack like a deer in headlights. The blonde girl walked over and took the death note from Billy without him noticing.

She glanced at the cover and then flicked through the pages. She stopped on a page and frowned. She turned the death note to face us so that Jack and me could see the page. Below 'REECE CALDON' scrawled across the page in messy capitals was 'Tony Macmullen' with a cause of death and conditions of death instructed in pen.

Below Tony's name at the bottom of the page was 'Joel Robinson' as well as his cause of death, time of death and circumstances of death right down to his declaration that God would smite him.

"Joel's death is written in here." The girl said to us. "In perfect detail. This is exactly what happened. I know because I was there. I suppose everyone in Year 11 was but that's not the point.

"You called this guy 'killer', and you said he wanted to figure out your name. Joel's name is written in here, so what is going on?" She was looking at me. _She's quite clever, like me and also like Jack_. Billy stared at all three of us in confusion and bewilderment.

"Give me the book!" Jack growled. I leapt up and ran past him, desperate to get to the death note first. I saw as I passed him in my peripheral vision, him head backwards in the other direction. It wasn't until I reached the girl's side that I realised I'd made a mistake. Even if Jack had gotten to the death note he still didn't know my name.

When I'd tackled him he'd dropped both the notebook and the roll list! He stood with it open in front of him and a malicious smile on his face.

"Ethan Jones." He read out loud. "Now I know your name."

"That may be true." I said, reaching into my pocket and pulling out the red pen I brought with me for this very situation. "But I also know _your_ name and-" I snatched the death note quickly from out of the blonde girl's hands. "I can kill you right now."

I opened the death note to a blank page and held it in one of my hands and with the other I hovered the pen dangerously above the paper. Jack froze and stared at me without moving. Billy started looking frantic.

"Why isn't she back yet?" He said looking towards the reception desk anxiously. The blonde girl just eyed us both cautiously.

"Jack Martin." I said clearly. My voice rang with finality and sounded like the voice of a judge giving a criminal the death penalty. "You are a murderer." I told him. "Joel Robinson was not your first kill. You already knew the death note worked after you used it on Tony Macmullen, who died of a drug overdose."

His eyes widened, shocked that I was privy to that information. "You still chose to kill him anyway. He may have been a bully but did that warrant a death sentence? There are also another hundred names written in here. It is clear that you have become mad with the power of this note book and need to be stopped.

"Yes you are a killer, but_ I_ am not." I closed the death note in my hand. Jack looked surprised. I threw the death note onto the floor in the middle of us. Jack made no move to get it and just stared at me. I wiped some of the blood off my face, smearing it onto my sleeves.

"Ever since I had known that someone else had taken the death note and had been using it for themselves I had regretted throwing it away. I wanted to find out who you were so I could meet you and talk to you. While I know that killing innocents is wrong, and that I would never kill another student like you had done, I can't bring myself to pass up this opportunity again."

I clenched my fists at my sides. "There's no way I would kill you Jack. Even though you've killed other people. I just don't want that over my conscious. Instead I think we should work together." Jack stared at me for a while. Then he finally spoke.

"I believe you, Ethan Jones." He said. I pushed my glasses up the bridge of my bleeding nose. I really hoped they hadn't snapped.

"That notebook kills people." The blonde girl said. It wasn't a question. She had believed us or at the very least believed that we thought that the notebook actually worked. Billy continued to look worriedly around for any sign of help. Jack knelt down and picked up the death note. He held it under his arm and stood up again.

"You technically are still the owner of the death note. That means that when you picked it up I would have lost all of my memories but I only recently learnt that if I still carry pieces of the death note on me I'll still remember using it." He pulled out a folded up page from inside of his pocket.

I stared at him blankly.

"You never read all of the rules, did you?" He asked me. I frowned. _What else about the death note didn't I know?_

"So I guess we'll both own it now." Jack told me.

"What about these two?" I said motioning to the girl and Billy.

"I don't think we can kill them without it being suspicious." Jack said out loud.

"Excuse me?" The girl said shocked. Billy didn't say anything. I turned to look at them beside me.

"How well can you guys keep a secret?" Jack groaned.

"It would be hard enough with two people sharing one death note, but four?

"Oh well, I don't know what's keeping the receptionist but we should go before she comes back with a teacher, I'll explain as much as I can." I tried to wipe more blood away but then winced from the pain.

"You three go, bleeding like this I have to go to the infirmary. Don't worry though, I'll tell them I tripped and face-planted if anyone asks."

**More shifting perspectives! Finally all four of the children have become acquainted with each other and the death note. They plan to band together, how will this go? Review?**


	7. Accomplices

**Gallu will introduce himself to the four new shared owners of his notebook. How will this work out?**

Hannah:

My life had suddenly become a whole lot stranger in the course of only a few days. It was Wednesday morning when I had arrived at school late, as I often do, so I had gone to the office to collect a late note, which I also often do. Then two boys called Jack and Ethan started attacking each other, rolling on the floor, fighting over a black notebook.

I didn't want to believe it when they told me. There was no way that a notebook could have the power to kill someone just by having their name written in it. It wasn't until I saw the death god of the notebook, a Shinigami, that I believed.

Me, Billy and Ethan were terrified at first (Ethan hadn't seen him yet either). It turned out that he was actually quite friendly, he said his name was _Gallu_. Neither me nor Billy felt that the death note was evil. We also didn't agree when Ethan suggested that we should destroy it.

Even so, Jack's idea of using the notebook to kill for personal gain was a little...frightening. I didn't know what we should do, or why I was involved, but I was glad that I was. The idea of a death note existing and the fact that we were in possession of it was exhilarating.

Terrifying, but exhilarating. On Wednesday Jack explained everything to us in an empty classroom while Ethan got healed up in the infirmary. It had turned out that the poor reception lady had given herself a heart attack from running and trying to find help.

Ethan became instantly suspicious and started to question Jack about it but he said he didn't even know her name. It was Mrs. Sanders or something, I think. It turned out that she hadn't ended up dying and only went to hospital; so Ethan was able to relax on the knowledge that no one had used the death note against her.

She was in a hospitalised condition and wouldn't be returning to her job at school for a while. I was sure glad she hadn't said anything about the fight to anyone. It was Thursday at lunch time when I had met Gallu and realised that the death note was authentic. If it wasn't for Billy and Ethan looking just as horrified as I had I would have thought I was just going crazy.

It was Friday today and I had gotten myself to school unnaturally early to head to the same empty classroom in the Visual Arts Block where we would meet again. Gallu had also seemed excited at the prospect of another meeting. I walked through the eerily empty school and was reminded of a ghost town.

I could already hear voices, including the loud raspy voice of the death god when I was a few feet from the door. I turned the handle and they all stopped talking and turned to face who had walked in. Jack was leaning against the wall while Ethan and Billy sat on chairs and Gallu sat on top of the desk in front of them.

In the middle of all four of them was the notebook. They looked relieved when they saw it was only me.

"You were supposed to be here at 7am. It's closer to 8." Jack told me.

"Fashionably late." I told him irritably.

I took my bag off my back and pulled out a chair next to Gallu. I didn't mind him at all, actually, I thought he was interesting and funny. Jack found him annoying while Ethan treated him like any other normal human. Billy was always visibly on edge when Gallu was nearby.

"Well we're all here now." Jack began. "So I think we should talk about the most important thing. What are we going to do with the death note?"

"I say we share it." I called out immediately. Jack raised an eyebrow.

"I was going to suggest me and Ethan share it but why would I let you hold onto it?"

"Why would you tell me and Billy everything and then not share it with us?" I asked loudly.

"I decided to tell you," Jack said seriously. "Because I needed to make sure you didn't tell anyone what you'd seen and heard, and I didn't want to resort to killing both of you."

Billy didn't seem like he was going to help me at all in this discussion. He was hunched forward on his seat so that his fringe obscured his face making it impossible to gauge his emotions. It was Ethan who spoke next.

"I say we all share it." Jack stared at him looking shocked and appalled.

"It's settled." I said before Jack could retaliate. "Thanks Ethan!" I told him. He looked away and I might have imagined that warm colour spreading across his face. Billy's head jolted up.

"Fine," Jack growled. "But we make a pact! We all have to put our hands on the death note and swear that we will tell no one of its existence.

"I mean no one," he said again. "Just to clarify I have a girlfriend and I have no intention of letting her anywhere near this notebook. I hope that you all will be just as careful." He put his hand on the notebook. I reached out and put my hand on top of his. Then Ethan and then Billy did the same.

"I swear." My voice was controlled and serious.

"I swear." Ethan's voice was calm and assured.

"I swear." Billy's voice was quiet but also sure.

"Good." Jack said. "I also swear. No one else will ever know about this. As for the idea of sharing, how about we transfer ownership to a different person after each week.

"That way after someone has the notebook they have to wait three weeks before it comes back into their possession again." Ethan thought, and then nodded.

"Sounds like a plan." He itched a part of his face behind his glasses.

"First I would like everyone to read the rules on the death note so that there's no misunderstanding. It turns out that if you don't own the notebook and you're not touching it, your memories of using it will go away until you come into contact with the notebook again."

"Really?" Ethan asked sceptically. "Does that mean you still have a page of the notebook on you right now?" Jack pushed off the wall and then turned on his side and lifted up his shirt so that we could see.

A small corner of a page, too small for a single letter to be written on let alone someone's name, was sellotaped to his waste. He then pulled out of his pocket a page of the notebook kept in a resealable plastic sandwich bag.

"We'll all have to tape a small piece of the death note to ourselves under our clothes. This is so that we can keep our memories of using the death note when we don't own it. Take caution when bathing that the piece doesn't fall off." he warned.

"Wait a minute." I said, trying to understand. "Why are we doing all this? Wouldn't it be easier if we all just took several pages? That way we wouldn't have to wait three weeks in between our turns."

"She has a point." Ethan agreed. "What's the point of taking the death note in turns and then transferring ownership after each week?" Jack frowned.

"There are several reasons why we need to do it this way. Firstly, I want to make a rule that we can never take pieces out of the death note. This is so that we only have to keep track of one thing. If pages end up missing they could be found and touched by other people.

"As we're all aware of, each piece has the full power of the note. Secondly I want us to take turns so that we know who's killing when people die. We need rules about who we're allowed to kill. Obviously no one from school and no one who is famous. It should also be people who we haven't been seen in public with.

"If anyone breaks these rules and kills someone they're not allowed to, then we'll know who did it this way. As opposed to trying to figure out who among us killed them if we all had several pages. The third and possibly most important reason is to build trust. If we all had pages we could become paranoid and tempted to use them on each other."

I looked around at Ethan and Billy. _Would one of them kill the rest of us just so that they could have the death note all to themselves? I couldn't be sure_. Jack continued. "If I thought there was a chance that one of you would kill me I wouldn't be talking to you now, but regardless, this way we can all learn to trust each other."

I didn't say anything and was too busy being wrapped up in my own thoughts.

"Sounds fair." Ethan said after a while. Jack opened the plastic bag and pulled out the page of the death note. He ripped off the other three corners and put the small pieces on the table. He walked over to the square metal sink where students were supposed to wash paint brushes after use.

After soaking the paper under the tap he pushed it down the drain.

"This is as thorough as we need to be." Jack said. "Ethan, did you ever keep a page of the notebook with you?"

"No," he said. "I didn't think that it would work at the time." Jack nodded.

After going through his bag he pulled out a roll of Sellotape and we all taped the small corner onto ourselves as instructed.

"Make sure it won't be easy to come off. Even if you do lose your memories, we should all still remember seeing each other so it would be a simple matter of touching whoever lost their memories with the death note.

"It would be preferable that we all remembered though, I can say from personal experience that regaining your memories is not pleasant." He turned to Gallu. "This plan will work won't it?" Gallu smiled greedily and his mouth opened to reveal sharp teeth.

"Should do." Then he laughed.

I pulled my shirt back down after I had applied the tape with the piece of the note to my skin.

"Now we need to figure out who's using it for the first week. Then who's second and so on." Jack thought before continuing. "Well I-"

"No way." Ethan interrupted. "You've had the death note for weeks! I'm the one who owns it at the moment."

"You threw it away!" Jack exclaimed.

"If anyone should have the death note it should be me or Billy." I told them. "We haven't had it yet and it's already been decided that we'll be sharing it with you two."

"I never thought I would see people so eager to throw away their souls." Gallu's crackly voice made all of us fall silent.

"What do you mean?" Ethan asked quietly. It was Jack who answered.

"The last rule on the second page says that '_The human who uses the notebook can neither go to heaven nor hell'_." Ethan blinked.

"Are you serious? But I didn't know it would work when I used it! Surely-" Gallu interrupted this time.

"It is assumed that anyone who has the intent to kill someone by writing their name in the notebook, even if they doubt the book's authenticity, does not belong in a place called heaven." Ethan stared and then looked down at his feet. When he spoke next he sounded disappointed.

"I finally figure out there's an afterlife and then I miss out on it...oh well." He sighed. "At least I know death will have no surprises for me."

"Well I don't care." I said to them. "I don't believe in that stuff anyway. What about you, Billy?" He looked up, shocked that he had been spoken to. He then looked down again and mumbled.

"No, I don't mind."

"So if we're over that little fact can we get to who gets to keep the death note for the first week?" Jack pressed. Ethan sighed.

"I don't mind waiting. To be honest, I don't even know if I'll use the notebook. I don't like the idea of killing anyone, even if it means getting money among other things."

"Alright, you can be last." Jack said and turned away from him. Ethan scowled.

"Hannah, Billy, who of you would like to be first?" Billy looked up, his fringe concealing his eyes.

"I don't mind waiting either." He said. Jack smiled.

"Great. You can be second last. Now there's just Hannah and me to decide."

"Whatever happened to ladies' first?" Ethan interjected. Jack grimaced.

"I don't think chivalry applies in this situation."

"Well like Ethan has already said you've had the death note for the past few weeks even if you didn't technically own it. So it should go without saying that I be first to hold it."

Jack sighed in aggravation but conceded to my logic.

"Fine, Hannah goes first. I'll be second. Billy is third and Ethan will get the book at the end of three weeks. Does everyone agree?"

'Yep's filled the room.

"Right, Ethan give Hannah the death note." Jack commanded. Gallu shifted on the table.

"It won't be as simple as just giving her the book, he needs to agree to relinquish ownership of it to her." Ethan walked up to me.

"Hannah," he said clearly, as if this were a legal matter. "I hereby transfer ownership of my death note to you." I stared at him.

"Whatever." I took the notebook and held it in my hands. I couldn't help smiling at it.

"So we're done here?" Jack asked impatiently, looking up the time on his mobile.

"The bell for roll call will go soon so we better leave."

"Hold on Jack." Gallu said. Everyone looked over at him. Gallu stood up and his wings opened wide. Billy flinched. He then walked off the table and hovered above the floor.

"Now that there's more of you I feel I should inform you all of something very important.

"I will be following the notebook so I will end up getting to know each of you quite well in the next few weeks. I don't do in principle anything that will help or prevent the deaths that you write in the notebook. That means you can't rely on me for anything. Just so we've got that out of the way...

"I also wanted to tell you that alternatively, this means if one of you wanted to write everyone else's names in the death note I wouldn't tell the others or do anything to stop you either." Jack tapped his foot impatiently.

"Get on with it, Shinigami."

"Right, well what I really wanted to tell you guys, and you probably won't hear me bringing this up again, is about something called the Shinigami eye deal."

"Oh." Jack said, already understanding.

"What deal?" Ethan asked perplexed. Another one of his wide and scary smiles cracked across Gallu's face.

Gallu:

I stared at the four children gathered in front of me. I licked my lips as if I could already taste half their life becoming mine.

"The Shinigami eye deal. It's mentioned in the instructions for the death note. The third rule of page five.

"_'A human can, in exchange for half his/her remaining life, get the eyes of a Shinigami which will enable him/her to see a human's name and remaining life span when looking through them'_. That means you'll never have to be worried you can't kill a human you've seen because you don't know their name.

"If you ever get attacked by someone and you have the death note you can kill them quickly just by writing down their name after you see it."

"Kill them quickly as in find the time to write down their name and then wait 40 seconds before they die." Jack was clearly frustrated at the idea of me trying to convince one of the others to take the deal.

I stared at him. Above his face I could see his name in English. _'Jack Martin'_ and then below it his lifespan in Shinigami time: _'99602225'_.

"I'll start with you Jack." I told him. "You once almost accepted the deal when you were in a tight situation. If that situation ever arises again you might want to be better prepared for it.

"Especially considering the fact that I will only be with you for one week out of every four that pass. You never know." Jack thought about it. I watched silently as he considered.

"I did almost accept the eye deal. That would have been a mistake if I had because I ended up fixing the problem anyway.

"I don't want to be too confident in that one power. I can still use _this_ if I ever need to figure out someone's name." He indicated to his head with his thumb. "However if I'm in a really bad situation you have my permission to bring up this deal again."

I groaned.

"So that's still a '_no_'?"

"I still value my remaining life and would like to spend it retiring on the beaches of a tropical island at a five star resort after I've got money for myself with the power of this notebook."

"I suppose I expected this answer from you. Moving on." I turned to look at the boy with the glasses. Above his head was the name _'Ethan Jones'_ and his lifespan: _'68610973'_.

"Ethan," I asked. "What is your answer? Do you accept the Shinigami eye deal?"

"Never." He said. His answer was so quick that it shocked me. He seemed more adamant than Jack was when I had first told him.

"Don't bother to bring it up later, either. I would never make that deal, even if it seemed hopeless. It's almost like giving up completely and letting myself get caught or killed.

"It would be like half-quitting, giving up half my life for the insurance that I wouldn't die before then. What would happen to the life I give up I wonder? It would be added to yours wouldn't it? This would explain why you're telling us this since you've already said you don't want to stop or assist us in any way."

"You're quite smart. Almost as smart as Jack I'd say." I told him. Jack smiled. "Which would explain why you outsmarted and caught him." Jack scowled. Ethan continued.

"If we ever encountered someone whose name we didn't know we would only need one person with the Shinigami eyes in our group.

"Even if they weren't there at the time we could just take a picture of the person and send it to them. Not that my phone has a camera… there's still no need for all of us to throw our lives away." I stared.

"That's true. Did you know that someone who has the Shinigami eyes has vision beyond perfect in the human measurement regardless of their previous eyesight?

"You wouldn't have to wear glasses anymore." Ethan hesitated but remained firm.

"Obviously I didn't know that but I stand by what I said. The answer is _no_." I sighed. If they all end up saying 'no' I could be in trouble since I can't use my death note to extend my life while they have it.

I turned to the only girl in the room. _'Hannah Walker'_ was above the numbers: _'82927009'_.

"What do you think, Hannah?" I asked her. She was still and looking down at the desk in front of her.

"I would want to accept this deal," she said, "_but_," My smile vanished. "I can't." she said simply.

"Would you care to elaborate on that?" I asked getting annoyed.

"In truth I could die the very next day. I could be hit by a bus or I could catch a disease. But I can't risk losing that future option. I'm not overly thrilled at the idea of getting married and having children but what if I fall in love?

"It doesn't seem likely now, but the fact is I don't know what will happen in the future. I can't risk the regret. I also don't want my parents to live to see their only daughter die. That's my answer."

"How very unfortunate." I wasn't trying to hide my irritation now. If I didn't get at least one of these kids to make the deal with me I might end up running out of years before they did. Now there was only one left and he had by far the shortest lifespan of them all.

_'William Taylor'_ was above the numbers:_ '22281937'_. He had been silent throughout most of the entire meeting and still hadn't said anything after I brought up the eye deal.

"Billy?" as I had heard the other humans call him for some reason. He looked up and his eyes became visible.

They were wide and his smile curved up his face in that same wicked way that Jack's had after he had sent Vincent to his death. He looked straight at me and then he spoke.

"Yes. I'll do it. I'll make the deal with you."

**Of the four children, Billy wishes to trade half his life for the eyes of a Shinigami, but how much time does that leave him with? Review?**


	8. Decision

**Billy is seeing the world through different eyes. How will this new development change him?**

Billy:

Gallu was right. It did feel strange, if only a bit. Gallu moved his hand away and I opened my eyes. I couldn't help the grin that spread wide across my face, revealing my teeth. The others stared at me strangely, worried by my expression but I ignored them. _Everything looked so clear!_

My vision was so much better than it was before, in comparison it was as if I had been staring through a film.

"Billy?" Ethan stepped forward concerned. I could see above his head the name _'Ethan Jones'_ and then a bunch of random digits, almost like a telephone number. The font seemed like standard print but the colour was a semi-transparent red. When I looked at the name floating above Ethan's head I noticed that it and the numbers drifted about somewhat.

"It works." I proclaimed loudly. I looked at Jack who was staring motionlessly at me. I could see his name and lifespan as well. "It really works!" I turned to Hannah and frowned. Even though her name _'Hannah Walker'_ was printed clearly above her head I couldn't see her lifespan.

Before I could ask Gallu saw the question on my face and spoke.

"Even with the Shinigami eyes a human can not see the lifespan of another human who possesses a death note. Although considering you can't read Shinigami time anyway it's more of an advantage if anything."

Normally I would be horrified that the terrible Shinigami would be talking to me but I was too busy being amazed at my vision to care.

"Before the bell rings and we have to go to class," Jack began, finally speaking, "we should add each other's numbers into our mobiles so we can call if anything goes wrong.

Mobiles were pulled out of pockets. Ethan's mobile looked a bit out-dated. It almost resembled a brick. Jack's phone was a nokia and Hannah's was a black flip-top. I pulled out my own silver phone and I added everyone's mobile numbers.

As if on cue the bell rang. I darted past Gallu and pulled open the door. Students were travelling through the double doors to their roll call classes. I stood in the middle of the hall and stared wide-eyed at everyone. _So many names! So many numbers!_ I started laughing and people who walked past either glared or stared at me strangely.

I could hear a sigh from behind me and an arm touch my shoulder but I shook it off and ran to the doors, shoving through a few angry students. When I was outside I could have screamed. I could see every student in the school walking to their roll call rooms.

Blood red names and lifespans were drifting about everywhere. I realised this would take some getting used to but I didn't mind. I'd just become the most valuable asset for Ethan and the others. With my eyes I'd finally be useful to another person.

"Billy?" I turned around to look at Ethan who stood staring at me warily.

"We should probably go to roll call now." My heart lurched when I realised he had been waiting so that we could go to roll call together. I stared down and my fringe covered my eyes.

I must have looked like myself again, the timid and frightened looking boy as I tried to conceal my blush. I didn't feel the same though. I was a new William, with a new power. I smiled back up at Ethan with my new found toothy grin and he recoiled slightly.

"Yeah, let's go."

Hannah:

I sat in Math class bored. I hated this subject because the teacher, Mr. Larson, wouldn't let me listen to my headphones. Since I obviously couldn't actually listen to what he was saying I was left to day dreaming. I couldn't stop thinking about how Billy had acted before.

It kind of frightened me. He had completely changed, it went from me hardly ever seeing his eyes to them being wide and manic looking. I now knew he had pale blue eyes. Pale blue terrifying eyes.

To be honest I had no idea what was going on in that kid's head. I gave up trying to figure out my new friend and instead started paying attention to what Gallu was doing. He had been pacing around the classroom looking at what the other students were writing.

He noticed me looking and stopped by my desk. He looked up at the teacher who was still droning on about trigonometry and then looked back at me.

"He's really boring, isn't he?" I barely stifled my laugh.

"Something funny, Miss Walker?" He asked sternly.

"No, sir." I said quickly, fighting my smile. I internally cursed Gallu and tried to ignore him. I started scribbling in my book, pretending I was writing stuff down. Gallu called out to me.

"I'm going to stay back here, Hannah." He yelled from the back of the classroom. "Tory and Claire are passing notes. Tory just asked Claire if she likes him, I hope she says 'yes'."

I face palmed and then continued to ignore him for the rest of the lesson. When school was over I spotted Jack and gave him a short wave as I headed to the gates, he nodded in my direction. He was with a brown haired girl. She caught the nod and then glared furiously at him.

I found my car and unlocked it. I got inside and wound down the windows all the way. When I started the car 'What's Up People?' by Maximum the Hormone started blaring from my speakers and got several disapproving stares from passers-by.

I couldn't care less about what they thought and I started driving. I could see in my car mirror that Gallu was flying above me. As I drove it gave me time to think about everything that had been happening lately.

I didn't like being vulnerable but the more time I spent with those other three and Gallu, the more I started feeling like I may finally have made some friends. It had gotten to the point where I had started to feel legitimately happy whenever I saw one of them. The idea was ludicrous.

They didn't know me. We would probably only see each other once a week to hand over the death note and that's it. It's not like we'd be sitting together at lunches or anything...

I wouldn't let myself become confused. We were just four very different people who would be using the death note for our own entirely selfish reasons. That's all. No matter how much I tried to convince myself, I still couldn't fight back that growing and potentially self-destructive feeling that I might finally belong.

…..

The next day I said goodbye to my parents as they left for work. In my room I sat at my desk and brushed my hair in front of my mirror. I could see Gallu staring at me in the reflection from where he stood in the corner of my room.

"Shouldn't you be hurrying or you'll be late for school?" He spoke, observing my slow pace.

"I'm not going to school today." I said calmly as I ran the brush through my hair again.

"You can choose?" Gallu exclaimed. "Then why does Jack and-"

"I'm choosing not to go to school today, even though the law says you have to. I'm wagging." I interrupted.

"Oh," Gallu said as realisation struck. "Won't you get in trouble if your parents find out?"

"If they do I'll tell them I was feeling unwell. They'll believe anything I tell them."

"They just saw you though, and you looked fine when you waved them off."

"I am a girl, though. So it won't be too hard to convince them." Gallu tilted his head in the reflection.

"I'll tell them I'm having girl problems." I clarified. He continued staring. "Do you have females in the Shinigami place, wherever you come from?"

"Yes, but they don't ever have problems just because of their gender."

"Never mind." I sighed, exasperated. I didn't really want to have to explain it.

I finished brushing and put the brush down on my desk.

"You know," Gallu began, "I've noticed that you spend much more time getting yourself ready before school than Jack does. Is that what you meant by girl problems? I've observed that the females at your school put a lot more effort into their appearance than the males do."

"Honestly Gallu, I don't really give a shit. I'm only trying to make myself look more grown up so no one thinks I'm a student." I tried applying the lipstick and ended up smudging my face. I swore. Licking my hand and wiping it off, I stood up and grabbed a handbag. I opened my school bag and took out the death note. I put it into the handbag with a few pens and a bit of money among other stuff.

"Oh!" Gallu jumped up and flew over with new energy and excitement. "Will you be killing someone with the death note today?"

"That's the plan." I slung the strap over my shoulder and exited my room.

"Where are we going?" Gallu asked as he hovered behind me.

"We're going to this park that I know." I said and exited the house.

I locked it with my key and walked past my car and turned right along the street.

"You're not taking the car." Gallu observed.

"I think walking would be a nice change." I said to him.

The skyscrapers of Brisbane near Kangaroo Point were huge. From where I stood they leered down at the pedestrians with overwhelming size. I was use to tall buildings in Brisbane, however.

I waited patiently at the crossing with a crowd of other people until the green walking man lit up and I crossed with the other adults. At the edge of Captain Burke Park there was a jewellers so I decided to walk inside. There were a few people walking about but it was very quiet.

The only noise coming from a shop assistant who was pointing out diamonds to a well-dressed elderly woman. I started looking around. There were plenty of gold and silver rings and necklaces with an assortment of expensive gems embedded in them.

I saw rubies, emeralds and sapphire stones. They were all pretty, but none of them really appealed to me directly. I figured that all of these must cost a fortune. I spotted a necklace with what looked like a flat gold depiction of an owl, with two purple jewels for eyes.

Getting closer but still not something I'd really want. I'd never gone looking for jewellery before considering it was always so expensive, but now that I have a death note a lot more things have suddenly seemed within reach to me. I bent down to look at the jewels on a bottom shelf and that's when I saw it.

A silver moon shaped cutting hung from a small, delicate chain. An onyx, just larger than a pea, was sitting inside the crescent moon. I looked at the price tag next to it, $6, 799. I frowned. That was more than what I had in my bank account.

"Can I help you?" It was the assistant who had been talking to the old lady before. He looked only a few years older than me. He had brown hair cropped short and freckles on his cheeks. A name tag pinned to his chest referred to him as 'Gus', but it only had a first name and nothing more.

When I looked up I was sure he would be annoyed at me, only asking for assistance as a way to disguise the fact that he'd want a minor who must clearly not have enough money to leave his shop. I was surprised to see that he was smiling kindly at me, however.

"Gus?" I asked feigning surprise. "As in Gus Jacobs from Brisbane State High School?"

"No, I didn't go to Brisbane State. My last name's Benson." He told me.

"My mistake," I said smiling sweetly. _Gus Benson_. "What can you tell me about this necklace here?" He looked at what I was indicating.

"Oh, yes. That one I do know a bit about. He pulled out a key on a chain he had around his neck and opened the glass case. Reaching in he pulled out the necklace to show me.

"It's actually a locket. Pure silver and with an onyx in the side, but you don't have enough money to pay for it do you?" I stared at him sheepishly.

"It's a beautiful necklace." He smiled again.

"We get a few girls who come in here to look around. I don't really mind it myself but the manager will get angry if he sees you in the shop."

"It's okay. I was just leaving anyway." I said to him.

"Take care." He said in farewell. I exited the shop and stared down at my feet as I walked. I crossed the street to the park and walked to the nearest bench. It was under a large tree with thick long branches and was facing the street and the jewellery shop.

I sat and remained looking down. I could see the shadow of the tree's spindly branches across the grass in front of me. A large winged humanoid silhouette landed in the tree and it shook slightly, although to passers-by it would appear like nothing more than the wind.

I knew I was staring at Gallu's shadow and that he was above me in the tree. Gallu's head popped down next to mine, I turned and realised he was hanging upside down from a branch.

"So," he asked expectantly. "Are you going to kill someone with the notebook?"

I opened my handbag and reached for the death note. I pulled it out and placed it on my lap but didn't open it. I pulled out a ballpoint pen and gripped it tightly. Gallu could see my hesitation.

"What about that guy I saw you talking to in the jewellery store? Did you get his name?" I stared at the death note in my lap.

"He knew I didn't have any money before he showed me the locket." I said aloud.

"What?" Gallu asked, confused.

I didn't look up. It seemed like Gus must have just been a genuinely nice person. _Could I kill someone like that?_ But if I don't kill him on the grounds that he was nice to me that just means I'm playing God and deciding who should live or die based on how they've treated me. That didn't seem right either.

I already had his name. Gallu's words from earlier kept circling through my head. _I never thought I would see people so eager to throw away their souls_. Ethan hadn't known the notebook worked and used it out of rash anger. Jack was perfectly happy with using the notebook for himself but he killed drug dealers.

Could I kill an innocent human being for something like money? It didn't sound right at all.

"Are you going to tell me what you're thinking?" Gallu demanded impatiently, swaying the branch he was dangling on.

"Gallu, if you break that branch in front of all these people walking by..." I didn't finish the threat. He _hmph_ed and flipped off the tree landing artfully in a crouch by my feet.

I stood up and turned, walking deeper into the forest to clear my head.

"Where are you going?" Gallu called after me and then muttered darkly. He took to flight and followed me. The more I thought about it, the more it felt like I was coming to the right decision.

Gus:

It happened instantly. In a single tick of the loud clock that hung up in the store above the counter. One moment I was standing in the store, several things on my mind. I was stressing about college, work and moving out. I couldn't stop worrying even if I hid it from the customers with kind smiles.

All of that vanished as if something washed it away. My mind became hazed, but at the same time I was clear and focussed. I knew what I had to do. Nothing else mattered to me, all of my other problems were gone like smoke. I felt slightly blissful in this new freedom.

The only thing that held me to this world now, was this one last thing I needed to do. After that second passed and my eyes glazed over I approached the jewellery case that held the silver and onyx moon locket. I realised that I had been in a conversation only moments before when the fat lady made a startled noise at my sudden change in character.

She started questioning me about something. It was so insignificant. All that concerned me was the locket. I gave her a response without looking back to calm her down, but the tone of my voice alerted her even more.

I used the key around my neck to unlock the case and remove the locket. In the back of my head I was idly aware that I wasn't allowed to take jewellery outside of the store. The voices behind me became more panicked and I heard the alarm sound from inside the store as I headed out.

Loud enough for the police station three streets over to hear. I started jogging across the street and into the park. I didn't know what it was, but there was some kind of force pulling me deeper into the trees.

I continued running for a while until the alarm was muffled through the canopy and woodland around me. I travelled across a bridge over a stream that some ducks were swimming in. I couldn't shake this dream-like feeling.

That's when I saw it. It was almost like it was glowing. A tree, opposite the bridge. I hurried over to it. There was a hollow in the trunk. I raised the necklace still clutched securely in my hand and then placed it into the tree.

The great power inside of me continued to urge me further along and so I complied. I ran back the way I came, although taking a different route. I didn't know what I was supposed to do or where I was supposed to go next. All I knew was that this strange new force would guide me and tell me when I got there.

I could see light ahead. Across the road was a police car by the store. I emerged from the forest and I could hear patrons yelling and then an officer calling out as he ran towards me. I could tell it was here. The force would then tell me what was next, what was the next thing it wanted me to do. _Nothing_. It said. I fell forward and died.

Hannah:

It was getting dark and I was walking home. Gallu hovered beside me as I stepped closer and closer to where I had started. The silver and onyx moon locket jangled around my neck as I walked. I slid it under my shirt to keep it hidden, the metal was cold against my skin.

Gallu turned his head to face me while I walked.

"So, in the end." He said. "In the end you decided to kill that guy, Gus Benson?" I was quiet for a moment but then I spoke.

"I thought a lot about it, Gallu. A lot about what I'd be giving up. Not just my soul, but my innocence and my humanity. I'm not some little girl who goes to school any more. I'm a murderer." I clutched my handbag. "This death note has given me power, and now I am no longer a victim. I am a predator."

Gallu continued to stare in silence so I continued. "At first I thought to myself, 'what is the right thing to do?'. But that's just it, isn't it, Gallu? Right and wrong are idealistic notions created by people as a means to control. It's true they have some purpose in society. They keep people from killing and stealing. They keep away chaos.

"But in all honesty. This world that preaches about good and evil is only fooling itself. How come only a small fraction of the world has more money while the rest of it has none? How come wealthy people are allowed to buy a second car when there are people dying in poverty?

"It's hypocritical. Modern society created these rules to benefit itself. It's just how humans are. When I do die, what difference will it make to me if I did what was morally correct? A conscious is only a burden that way. I'm not afraid to kill because in the end, every human has the capacity and tendency for evil inside of them.

"As for Gus Benson, I'd say the rule 'nice guys finish last' would apply. If I had never found the death note I would continue to live in my fake world of right, wrong and reason and be comfortable. The death note has opened my eyes. No one ever came to save me in my pain, so I won't be merciful either.

"For once, I'm in control of my own destiny and I won't be limited by the silly preconceptions of right and wrong." I stopped talking.

"That was quite a speech." Gallu responded. I gave a slight nod. Another wicked smile curved over his face.

"You know, Hannah. I think I'm starting to like you." I laughed.

"I already like you, Gallu. You're very funny. Just try not to make me laugh when I'm in class or around other people, okay?"

"Sure, I'll try." We walked the rest of the way in silence, and I didn't stop gripping my handbag.

**Jack and Ethan have made it clear where they stand with the death note. Hannah has come to her own decision as well. Review?**


	9. Thief

**Time passes a bit in this chapter, but a new complication arises as well that could change the course of the four children and their god of death.**

Ethan:

It was nearing the end of May and I could sense winter's approach. At lunch time I made my way back to the empty Visual Arts room where we would all meet. Making sure no teacher saw me I quickly opened the door and went inside.

"Hello, Ethan." Gallu growled merrily.

"Hi," Hannah greeted happily and then frowned for some reason.

"Hello." Mumbled Billy. He looked down embarrassed from where he sat and I was once again reminded of him before he had accepted the deal with Gallu. Jack gave his usual nod in my direction but gave no other indication that he was happy to see me.

"Good morning!" I said to them all politely and found myself a seat next to Hannah and Billy.

"So," Jack started, looking over to Hannah. "You weren't at school yesterday. Did you end up killing someone with the notebook?"

Hannah gave a dark look but didn't reply straight away.

"My personal life is none of your business. If you want to find out you'll just have to wait five days until it's your turn and then read what I've written."

"Looks like it." Jack snarled in response.

I didn't exactly know why but the idea that Hannah may have actually killed someone worried me. Looking over at the blonde girl as she stared ahead with that dark look on her face I couldn't help feeling fear for her.

"I don't think we should let the death note change who we are." I blurted out without thinking. I realised I was still looking at her when she turned around to face me.

"You can't judge me, Ethan." She spat. "After all, you've used the notebook too! We all already agreed that we'd be using it for personal gain, so what's private should stay private. It's not like we're friends or anything." She said with venom. Jack looked at the two of us warily.

There was too much anger in her voice to be over just what I'd said. _There must be something else wrong with her_. I thought.

"Well I consider you a friend." I told her truthfully. Her eyes widened and she stared at me in shock. "I consider all of you guys my friends." I said looking around the room.

Jack's face went blank. Billy smiled gratefully.

"Why thank you, Ethan." Gallu said from across the room. "I consider you a friend, too. Well, at the very least as much as a friend as a Shinigami can be with a human. Rest assured that if you died I would feel some form of remorse over you."

I nodded in understanding to the Shinigami. I expected that would be as much emotion as I could get out of him. I turned over to look at Billy and I noticed he was frowning at something over my head.

"Is something wrong, Billy?" I asked. He blinked and looked down at my face.

"No, nothing. Sorry."

Jack also noticed this.

"I've been thinking." He said to us. "Billy, you can see all of our lifespans but you can't read them?" Billy nodded.

"I've basically memorised them by now since I see you guys so often."

"Have you noticed that the numbers are often similar in a large group of people?" Jack asked. Gallu looked at Jack curiously from across the room with his large yellow eyes.

"Usually." Billy agreed.

"What are you getting at?" I asked Jack.

"People generally have the same lifespan." Jack explained. "It's the life expectancy of humans. I believe for our generation it's something like seventy to eighty years. So even if we don't know the exact time of our deaths, we can have a general idea of how long we will live compared to the average lifespan of people our age."

"Very clever, Jack." Gallu called. Jack ignored him.

"So what do you think is a general lifespan that you see above people?" He asked Billy. Billy stared and then thought to himself.

"Usually lifespans have eight numbers in them," he said slowly, "but sometimes they can have nine."

Jack nodded.

"So I'd say usually the numbers are in the high eight digits or low nine digits?"

"Yeah." Billy answered. Jack thought to himself, then he turned to Gallu.

"The lifespans you see above people's heads, do they include accidents, diseases and other stuff like that? Or is it just death from old age that you can see?"

Gallu gave a short laugh for some reason.

"We see what time destiny has decided for that human to die. Regardless of the cause. Otherwise we wouldn't know how much life we were adding to our own whenever a Shinigami killed a human with their death note.

"The only kind of death we can't see in an individual's lifespan, obviously, is if someone is killed by having their name written in a death note. However, you could have just asked that boy-" Billy twitched, "-and he would have told you that there are too may lifespans way below the average for him to only be seeing someone's death from old age." Gallu laughed again.

_Is he implying that we have small lifespans? Is that why Billy was staring over my head? Was he looking at my lifespan and frowning?_ Jack sighed.

"What numbers can you see above my head?" He asked Billy seriously. Billy looked above him and was about to speak when Gallu interrupted.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Jack?" He asked. "Once you figure out the time of your death you can never avoid it. It will haunt you until you die. Some would consider it better off not knowing." Jack looked over to Gallu.

"I'd consider this worth knowing. I need to see how much time I have left and fit my life plan before that time comes." He looked back at Billy. "Tell me."

Billy spoke blankly.

"The numbers I see above your face are: _nine, nine, six, zero, two, two, two, five_." He read. Jack thought to himself.

"Eight digits, but it starts with a nine. Is that anything like the average of lifespans you see above other people?"

"Yes, most of them start with nine and are eight digits." Jack leaned back in his chair and put his hands behind his head. He closed his eyes.

"Sounds like I'll probably live to my seventies or eighties then. That's wonderful news." He said quietly with a smile on his face.

"Well what about me?" I asked. I turned to Billy with a questioning stare. He hesitated but then answered.

"_Six, eight, six, one, zero, nine, seven, five_." I counted in my head, even though I was already sure it was unnecessary.

"That's only eight digits." I said appalled. "It's basically two thirds of Jack's life!"

"Bad luck." Jack said plainly. I sighed heavily.

"I suppose it could have been worse. Oh well, like Gallu said, there's no point worrying about it now." I felt a bit disappointed and I could tell Billy felt bad for me.

"What about you, Hannah?" Jack asked sinisterly. "Want to know when you'll die?"

"But I can't see her lifespan." Billy interjected.

"That's fine." Jack said. "She can just transfer ownership to me, then you'll be able to read her lifespan and I'll give it back afterwards. Unless you don't trust me?" Jack asked with mock innocence.

"Oh no, Jack." Hannah said sarcastically. "You're a regular Mother Teresa." She stood up. "I would not like to know something like that now. When you do see my lifespan, Billy, don't tell me. I'll decide later if it's something I want to now." She put her bag on her back.

"Where are you going?" I asked her.

"The bell will ring soon." She said. "I'm going to my next class." Then she left.

"I wonder what's wrong with her?" I asked the other three. Billy shrugged. Gallu remained silent for a moment but then his wings outstretched and he lifted himself above the ground.

"I better follow her," he said bored. "She's still attached to the death note after all." I was the only one who said 'goodbye' to Gallu. He stayed for a while longer.

"See you." Then he flew through the door.

…

Time passed and as it did, Ethan could feel that the four outcasts along with himself, were starting to drift closer and closer together. Billy had been a lot nicer and wasn't as shy as before. I sat next to and talked to him every roll call before class.

We got along really well and he had stopped blushing from embarrassment whenever one of us looked at him, but that hadn't gone completely. At first, Hannah had seemed secretive and cold but that had changed dramatically over the weeks. She was actually very nice, especially to me and Billy.

Jack hadn't changed much. The three of us were coming to the conclusion that he just didn't want friends. Gallu also seemed the same, although he had gotten to know each of us very well from all the time he had been spending with us. To say, however, that everyone was happy all the time, would be a complete lie.

The most noticeable change was in Billy, but I was noticing these glitches with Hannah as well. It must have had something to do with them gaining the power to kill. I was noticing that their view of things had started to differ from what they had been.

They seemed a bit more...remorseless, in their way of thinking. They also showed a progressively decreasing value in human life. They were becoming proud and, even though they wouldn't say it I was sure they were thinking it, that they were like gods.

It was the middle of July, and I found I was definitely in the midst of winter. The cold didn't help soothe my worries. Today was the day where I would be transferring ownership of the death note back to Hannah.

It was my second turn at holding the death note but just like the first time I had failed to write down any names. Billy was starting to stick up for himself more and increase in confidence, I realised this when he joined Hannah's side in arguing that there was no point in me holding the death note if I didn't use it. It was Jack who saved me by saying that from the beginning we had agreed not to be judgemental on what each of us used or, in my case, didn't use the death note for.

At lunch I sat in either the Art classroom or library with Billy, Hannah and Gallu. Jack occasionally sat with us, but he spent a lot of time with his girlfriend who he hadn't managed to break up with yet. Although he had managed to keep the death note a secret from her all of this time, which I personally thought should be commended.

Even if it was Jack's turn to carry the notebook he would tell Gallu to sit with us if he knew he wasn't able to at lunch because he would be with Emma. Gallu didn't mind sitting with us and joining in on our conversations although he wasn't with us all the time, either. Sometimes he would fly around the town or start stalking random people.

I entered the empty Visual Arts room where the other four were already waiting for me. Hannah leapt up excitedly and stood in front of me with her arm out expectantly. I took off my bag and unzipped it. I fished around for the death note and then passed it to her.

"I relinquish ownership of this death note to you."

She stared at it greedily and then started flicking through the pages.

By now the four of us had recognised each other's writing well. She scowled when she saw I hadn't written down any names.

"Again, Ethan?"

"Don't berate me." I said and walked past her to take a seat next to Billy, although he was also frowning at me.

Gallu was squatting on a desk in the corner of the room.

"You know Ethan, if you're not comfortable with using the notebook I could simply erase your memories and you could go back to your normal life." Before I could respond Jack beat me to it.

"That's no good. He'd only forget about using the death note. He'd still know all our meeting places and still talk to us which would make it difficult to discuss things about the notebook while at school."

"I suppose that's true." Gallu conceded. "Either way, I'm just glad I get to be with Hannah again for a week. Billy is so boring, he barely ever talks to me. More or less ignoring actually."

"_Sorry_." Billy said nervously without looking at him. I was sure Gallu could tell he was not at all sorry. He _hmph_ed angrily to himself.

"I don't want to go back to my normal life!" I told them suddenly. "Not that my life can ever be normal again since Reece is dead."

"You're still going on about that guy you killed?" Jack said, rudely exasperated.

"He was our only source of income." I said thinking of me and my mother. It turns out my brother hadn't decided to help her out after all.

"You have a source of income." Hannah said. "You just refuse to use it." She held up the death note.

I sighed but gave no other response. My life would never return to normal. I could walk around my house freely without fear of bumping into an angry drunken Reece. If the death note had gotten rid of him, maybe it wasn't all bad. Maybe I could somehow use it for good instead of evil.

Billy:

Tall and good looking, with a girl all over him. I sat in the train station on an early morning as I watched people come and go. It was a good place to see people's faces. I gripped the bench I was sitting on as I watched the smiling young man.

His name was Bryce Miller and his life span was eight digits and started with a four. That meant he'd die when he was middle aged? Probably younger. It was Jack who had told us that we were allowed to do whatever we wanted with the death note and that there would be no judgement.

I didn't want any of them to know what I really used the death note for. I pulled out the pages of the death note I had taken secretly from the notebook when it had been my turn the first time. In the actual notebook I made sure to kill people. I killed the same amount as Hannah each time it was my turn, the absolute minimum.

Every time it was my turn, on the day I had been given the notebook from Jack, I sat down at my desk in my room with a pen and killed several people straight away. They were all random names of people I found from photos in the newspaper and didn't care about. I made sure to write conditions telling them to leave money in a specific place but I rarely ever went to retrieve it.

The conditions I wrote were only to distract the others from what I was really using the death note for.

_Bryce Miller. Accidental death in three year's time. Immediately excuses himself to the nearest men's toilets and goes to the furthest unoccupied cubicle. He enters and waits leaving the door open. When another person enters with him and closes the door he lets that person do anything they want to him. Then he leaves and instantly forgets what happened, resuming his daily life._

Depending on the lifespan I saw, I chose in how many years that person would die. I was usually able to give them at most twenty years but if their lifespan was too low I played it safe. It says in the rules that if the circumstance of death is impossible the victim would simply die of a heart attack in forty seconds, so I couldn't say they would die after their pre-determined lifespan.

The man called Bryce politely excused himself and left for the toilets. I watched him leave and smiled to myself. It was remarkable how easy it was for me to go completely against everything I had been raised to believe. As I stood up I realised that what I did technically made me a rapist, but whatever, men were horny bastards anyway and if they so eagerly threw themselves at any woman who would have them I didn't have any problem messing with them like this.

Hannah:

I was in the city again by Captain Burke Park and Gallu was at my side. I walked merrily past the stores and other people. I noticed the jewellery store where I had first killed that man, Gus Bennett. There had been many others since him.

The death note was filled with several names. About a dozen were written by me, the same amount by Billy while Jack had written even more. The only writing that wasn't on the page was Ethan's.

Ethan confused me and I often wondered why he would even hold onto the death note if he wasn't going to use it. Maybe the problem was emotional? Once you got over the initial feeling of guilt using the death note had become easy for me.

I really did enjoy the towering city; it made me feel small, but in a good way. As I walked with my headphones in my ears I listened to 'Phenomenon' by Thousand Foot Krutch. It was amazing how everything looked different now: People, things, buildings. I felt like if I wanted I could simply raise my hand and touch the sky. I may have not accepted the Shinigami eyes but the death note had already given me new eyes to see the world through. Not only that, but it was back in my possession once again.

I noticed it was getting darker. I clutched at my handbag over my shoulder. I had been too busy simply walking around the beautiful city to actually kill someone with the death note. I decided I should go home soon, even with this weapon of potential mass murder in my possession, I was pretty sure the streets wouldn't be safe at night. I pulled my earphones out so I could talk with my flying companion.

"Gallu, I'm probably going to go home now." The Shinigami groaned.

"But you didn't even kill anyone, I came here for nothing." A rough hand pulled my arm and gripped my handbag, a man in a coat ran through Gallu and pushed me to the ground, separating me from my bag.

I gasped as I landed and I watched him run off.

"Maybe I didn't come here for nothing after all..." Gallu then made a whistling noise as we both watched the fleeing burglar.

"Stop! Someone help! He stole my purse!" I screamed as I tried to get back onto my feet.

A strong man walking beside a woman grabbed the thief and they struggled for a bit but then the thief simply slipped out of his coat and kept running. I ran up to the strong man and turned to see the criminal jump into a parked car with my handbag. He twisted the ignition and drove off.

"Oh my God!" The woman was saying. "I'm calling triple zero!" She fumbled with her phone.

"Sorry," the man said to me as I panted, out of breath from running, and simply stared at where the man had disappeared. He handed me the thief's jacket and turned to the woman.

"Did you see his number plate?" They kept talking urgently but their voices drowned out in my mind. _Oh no. Oh NO! The death note has been stolen!_ I looked at the jacket I held in my hands. I went through the pockets and found something. A piece of paper.

I looked closer and realised it was the printed out receipt for an air travel ticket. This person was boarding a flight to America in three days from Brisbane airport. I looked back up and glared at where the thief had disappeared. I would be ready for him, and take the death note back as soon as I had the opportunity, preferably before he figured out what it did.

**Is it true? The death note has been stolen by a thief! Hannah is determined to get it back, but will she be successful? Review?**


	10. Inconspicuous

**Obviously the other four have their own differing reactions to Hannah's unfortunate news.**

Hannah:

"I don't believe this! How the fuck could this have happened?" I sat in our secret meeting place, the secluded art room, scowling. If Jack kept this up the teachers in the art staff room were going to burst in to find out what all the yelling was about.

I had long since given up on trying to get Jack to calm down. What's done is done; all that is left is to calmly and concisely make a plan to get the death note back into our possession. Not that the hot head could calm down enough to see that.

Billy looked thoroughly terrified and wasn't speaking at all; at least Ethan was being level-headed and trying to find a solution to this mess.

"We may not have the death note anymore, but what we do have is the thief's receipt for an aeroplane ticket. So we know where he is going to be in two days."

"I just don't know how you could have been so careless that you lost it!? What were you thinking!?"

"I didn't lose it." My voice was quiet and laced with venom. "It was stolen."

"It's not like she had left it somewhere obvious, she had it on her when it was taken." Ethan defended me chivalrously. Jack put his face in his hands and sat down, seemingly exhausted. Gallu's slow crackly voice made everyone suddenly aware of him.

He was standing in the corner of the room, partly concealed by shadow. Tall and like a statue, his yellow orb-like eyes peered at us from the darkness. His new cold resolve made him finally seem like a god of death since the first time I had seen him.

"Hannah is still the owner of the notebook so I'm bound to follow her. That may not be the case for long." He did something with his mouth, was he relishing in this? His voice pierced my heart and for a moment I felt true fear.

"Should the thief discover the death note and realise its authenticity, he is sure to read all of the instructions. He'll know you are its owner and he's probably already seen your face. I shudder to imagine you would have all kinds of identification in that handbag that would give him your name.

"If it turns out he doesn't remember your face I'm sure in what he stole there would be enough for him to find out where you live." I paled. A sickening sense of understanding washed over me as I realised I could drop dead from a heart attack at any moment.

"Then we don't have time!" Ethan was on his feet.

"Wait guys," Billy began and we all turned to look at him. "Even if he did see the book, we don't know that he would have tried it. He could have just taken the money and thrown the bag away.

"The death note could be _lost_." His voice seemed to break at the end of that word.

"Finding this guy is all we have." Jack mumbled darkly. "We have to go to Brisbane Airport." I stood up suddenly.

"No! What do you mean '_we_'? This is _my_ problem! The death note was lost on _my_ turn! I'll go to the airport, but I'm going _alone_."

"That's far too risky!" Ethan yelled. As much as I appreciated his help, I hated it when he got all over-bearing.

"It's not your decision! Either way if all of us go it will look too suspicious. I'm the only one out of the four of us who has a license."

"Don't worry Ethan," Gallu interjected. His regular chirpy voice seemed to have returned to him. "I'll be with her. I'm really interested in meeting this thief again."

"So it's settled." I concluded. Ethan was about to open his mouth when Jack spoke.

"Fine. Like she said it happened on her watch. She has the right to deal with her own problems by herself. Makes it easier for us." Ethan turned to him floundering.

"There's just one major problem I think we're forgetting." Ethan argued. "How the hell is she supposed to wrestle the Death Note off of a fully grown man?" It seemed like no one had any idea how to respond to that, until Billy cleared his throat nervously.

"I have something to confess." We all stared at him expectantly and he seemed to grow increasingly uncomfortable by the second. "I stole pages from the death note!" He blurted. "They're hidden beneath papers under the bottom drawer of my desk."

I stared at him appalled.

"You what?" Jack was incredulous and I thought he was going to start yelling again. Billy hung his head guiltily.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled sadly. I sighed heavily.

"This isn't so bad." I tried to bring the conversation back to me again to spare Billy. "Now I won't be going in unarmed."

"You don't have his name!" Ethan yelled. "Unless you're going to be taking Billy with you?"

"I can do this myself!"

"At any rate," Jack interrupted us. "I'd prefer it if Billy didn't go, as you all can understand I don't trust him now."

The small boy with the honey brown hair cringed at the cutting edge in the taller boy's voice.

"Sounds to me like you'll need the eyes?" Gallu questioned cheerfully.

"I told you before Gallu, and my mind hasn't changed. I'm not going to give up on half my life."

"Then what?" They all brought their attention to me. I felt like I was in the spotlight. I had said it before though right? This was my problem, and I would fix it on my own.

"I'll take a picture of his face, and send it to Billy with my phone. The Shinigami eyes can see someone's name in a photograph, can't they?"

"Clever girl," Gallu commented. "So you're going to drive yourself to the airport? Find this man, get a picture of his face with your mobile thing and send it to Billy so he can kill the thief from here? Seems straightforward. I wonder if your plan works as well in practice as it does in theory."

"It better. It's all we have right now."

"I don't care for that plan." Jack interjected. "We all made the rules when we agreed to share ownership of the Death Note. Billy broke it. I don't want him anywhere near that book, or even its pages."

Billy looked like he was about to cry.

"You're not the one who decides everything, Jack." Ethan snapped heatedly.

"Whatever!" I tried to calm down the atmosphere with a compromise. "I'll send his picture to Billy, he'll text me the thief's name and I'll kill him with the pages. Sound fair to you all?"

"It appears we do have a plan." Gallu licked his lips, as if he was savouring the taste of a delicacy. "Don't forget if it weren't for Billy's betrayal of trust you would be entering this situation without a weapon."

"Okay." I was glad things had gone more or less my way. "Billy will bring the pieces to school tomorrow and I'll write a situation where this guy will kindly return the death note to its owner upon meeting him at the airport. What could possibly go wrong?"

…..

Two days passed and my silver Toyota economy car sped along the highway. It was a warm and sunny afternoon, not that I noticed. I was trying not to think about what was at stake. It would take me some time before I reached the airport.

Even so I was careful enough to have planned it so I would make it there several hours before the thief would have actually left for his flight. If he gets on that aeroplane to the United States, it's all over.

There's no way any of us could follow him out of the country without our parents figuring out. The risk was just too great. The time frame I had in which I had to successfully retrieve the death note was small. There was no margin for error.

Customs security is incredibly tight; I had to catch him before he passed through a barrier. I remembered what Gallu had said a few days earlier, about hoping my plan would work as well in practice as it did in theory. As the tires of my car spun forward and the speedometer changed it seemed to me that it was quite unrealistic.

No time to worry about the details now, this plan was all we had. Gallu was flying above me; his wings beat more frequently as he had to keep up with my speed. He didn't seem to mind the exercise and I didn't slow down at his expense.

One page of the death note was in folded over in my pocket with three ballpoint pens. The turnoff for Brisbane International Airport lay ahead. I moved the steering wheel closer towards my fate.

_I had only seen part of the man's face_. I thought to myself as I sat inside the waiting area of the huge airport. Large black sunglasses obscured my face and I sat alone, trying to look inconspicuous. Even though I had trouble recalling his face from memory, I was sure that if I saw him again I would know.

The name on the flight receipt ticket was for a Mr. Dart Grey. None of us had ruled out the possibility of an alias which is why Billy waited at the other end for a picture message from me to confirm his identity.

Crowds of people passed me. Families wheeling varyingly coloured luggage and business workers hurried about. I sat expectantly waiting for him by one of the tables surrounding a café. It might not have been a bad idea to buy a drink but I was too on edge.

I couldn't afford to let myself be distracted. When I did see him I immediately looked downwards to cover my face. I had been searching through the mass of people for faces when I noticed him. I needed to be sure he didn't recognise me by my face from when he mugged me.

His luggage was light and he walked carefully towards a food store that sold kebabs. It seems he was going to purchase lunch before he boarded. How convenient for me. According to the information on his receipt his plane will be leaving in just under two hours.

Where I sat wasn't close enough. People constantly obscured my view of him as they walked past to their own terminals. I needed to get closer without him spotting me. Casually standing I made my way closer to him so I could see him better.

I was thankful for Jack's warning about making sure Gallu wasn't near me should the thief look around and spot him from already touching the death note. The grouchy Shinigami agreed to stay on the roof and peer through the high glass windows if curiosity demanded it.

I carefully made my way around people towards the back of his head, my phone already clutched tightly in my hand. His thinning hair was a dirty blonde colour like mine but was flecked with grey. I was getting close to him now; if he turned he would see me for sure.

I made my way around him to get a better view of his face and then he moved. I froze in horror as he turned and dug through his luggage bag beside him. He removed the thin black notebook and my heart hammered.

Pulling a pen from his shirt pocket, he casually opened the book and began to write. In public, in broad daylight! I backed away from him quickly, and a terrified thought made me stop. _What if it's my name he's writing down?_

A large analogue clock ticked on the wall above me. In forty ticks, forty seconds someone here was going to die. The thief seemed so casual when he wrote in it, almost like he wasn't aware of the impact of taking someone's life.

I had used the death note to kill innocent people before, but I could never be so calm when I wrote. Like I had no problem with it at all. Then a thought struck me, maybe he doesn't know that what he's holding is really a weapon?

Unless he's an incredibly sick-minded individual, he won't kill someone right here unless he doubted the authenticity of the note. He didn't write long enough to jot down a cause of death either, but I couldn't be sure.

There was a scream. Across the large room a young man behind a counter with a name tag on his chest clutched his heart before dropping lifelessly to the floor. People nearby started to panic and while all heads turned in the direction of the murder my head snapped elsewhere.

The look of sudden panic on his face made it clear to me. _He didn't know the death note was authentic, but he sure as hell knew it was now_. Frozen there for a good long minute, he made his way to the bathroom on unsteady legs.

Shit. Following him into the men's bathroom would not go unnoticed. It didn't play to my advantage either; I needed to be somewhere open where he couldn't try to hurt me. I made my way to the oncoming traffic of flyers that were not yet distracted by the incident of the collapsed man.

I spotted a woman in her sixties and something about her made me think she was the type of person I needed.

"Excuse me!" I said urgently and pulled her aside.

"What are you-?" Her indignant reaction was cut off when five hundred dollars in fifties was revealed discreetly between us. She looked at the money silently and then eyed me.

"I need you to do something for me quickly, it won't take long I promise."

After a quick explanation of what the thief looked like the woman posted herself outside of the toilets and was ready to do my dirty work for me. If he was like Ethan, hopefully he would have just thrown the notebook away after using it. Luck didn't seem to work that way for me however.

The toilet door opened. My hand clenched on the sheet of paper in my pocket. The circumstances of death were written for him to give the death note to a girl of my description. All I needed was to write down his name next to them.

The thief walked out and the woman held up my phone and used the camera to take his bewildered photo. He started shouting. She held up her hands to calm him. They appeared to be talking heatedly.

I couldn't make out their words from the other side of the room. It didn't seem like the old lady was going to sell me out though. He reached into his bag and a tall man obscured my view. For a few seconds I couldn't see anything and then I noticed the thief was smiling.

Not in a sinister way but a friendly way. I was instantly suspicious. They talked for a while longer and I became impatient. Eventually she walked away, my phone still clutched in her hand, and she made her way across the busy room.

I stared in expectation from behind my sunglasses, and then I caught sight of the thief's expression. It held just as much expectation as mine. _Oh no_. Did she give him her name? When I couldn't see them before, did he write her name down in the death note?

Her eyes widened. The poor old woman seemed to fall in slow motion. My phone was in her hand, I needed that phone, but now people surrounded her. This guy wasn't a thing like Ethan; he had used the death note again immediately after figuring out what it did.

He was like Jack. His face held all the wicked excitement of a mischievous child. I didn't have time, he had to die and I had to get the notebook back. I surged forth and pushed people aside to get to the fallen woman.

_Sorry_, I thought feebly. I had avertedly been the cause of her death. I pulled the phone from her dead grasp while shocked eyes stared at me all around. Robbing a dead woman in a crowded area, how's that for inconspicuous?

People shouted at me but the only pair of eyes that got my attention was his. He stared at me with horrible recognition appearing in those tawny eyes of his. Looks like he did remember; now would be a great time to run.

I did. A glance back showed him pushing through people as he chased after me. While I tried focussing on both running and sending a photo message to Billy's number I wondered if he was chasing me because he didn't have my name, or because he didn't remember my face and the sunglasses were in the way.

The message sent and I skidded to stop running into a tall dark skinned man who glared at me as I moved around him. Focussing on moving now, I sped through the people to the exit of the building. I was met by dazzling sunlight and ran, not to the car park but the upward street that led to the overpass and highway.

Turning back I found myself starting to panic. _Damn, he was fast_. My phone beeped and I saw I had a new message from Billy.

_Chandler O'Reily_.

As I wrote his name down while I ran I was thankful I hadn't tried to take his picture on my own. I would have never made it outside of the airport if I had. I stumbled as I felt his foot kick my leg. He tried to trip me but I only stumbled and turned.

He struck me across the face and I landed harshly on the concrete by the small metal fence of the overpass. My sunglasses skidded away from me and I could hear the cars zooming along busily below me. His shadow loomed over me, obscuring the afternoon sun.

"Who are you?!" He snarled at me, shaking me viciously. "Tell me or I'll throw you over this overpass!" Blood trickled into my vision, pain and fear enveloped me. His body went rigid and I felt his grip loosen. Dropping the death note into my lap he then shook violently and collapsed forward.

He spun against the railing and fell to the street below. I heard a sickening splat as well as the swerving and honking of cars. I reached for the fallen sunglasses before chancing a look over the fence at his ruined body. It was time to leave; no one can see me here.

…..

"I told you there was no reason to worry." Jack took the death note from me and eyed it in his hands. He flicked through the pages before handing it back.

"I'm impressed." He admitted. "I wasn't sure you could do it."

Gallu gave a gravelly chuckle as he observed us where he stood against the wall of the abandoned class room. All five of us were inside. Order had been restored, we had our death note. In front of Billy were three sheets of paper that had been torn from the death note.

On one of those papers was Chandler's name. Jack stepped towards them and scrunched up the papers before pulling out a cigarette lighter from his pocket. He lit the papers on fire and dropped them back on the desk in front of Billy who stared wide-eyed while they burned.

"You don't have to remove the piece of paper you have taped to your body. That means your memories will remain, but you can't hold onto the death note anymore. As long as I'm alive, you won't have another turn at it."

Billy stood up angrily and glared at Jack. Both me and Ethan looked on in shock. Billy had always been so passive and shy, but it seemed since he made the Shinigami eye deal he had changed a lot.

They stared at each other silently for a few moments before the smaller boy walked around the taller brunette and left the room without a word. The fire on the desk went out. All that was left was ash.

"You don't really mean that, do you?" I asked Jack when it was just the four of us. Gallu watched on eagerly.

"No." Jack answered. "We need his eyes. He's still the most valuable member out of all of us."

Ethan looked up through his black glasses and dark fringe.

"Things may be changing soon." He quietly predicted.

**Hannah has succeeded in retrieving the death note, but what of Ethan's worrying prediction? Review?**


	11. Overkill

**The story is reaching its final complication! What will be the result of the schism in the group formed by Jack and Billy?**

Billy:

It had been three days since Hannah had reclaimed the death note from her thief. She had previously been in possession of the notebook, but yesterday she had transferred it to Jack. Based on how the cycle was, I should be the one with the notebook in seven days' time.

It didn't look like that was going to happen. I remembered the words Jack had spoken to me.

_As long as I'm alive, you won't have another turn at it._

If anything could be said about the death note, it was that it changed people. Ethan always seemed afraid by the influence it had. I was not ignorant to the changes the book was having on me, but I wasn't afraid of them either.

For the first time in my life, I liked the person that I was now. I wasn't just some tag-along to the group. I was the most powerful piece in this game, I possess the Shinigami eyes! Given that, I knew that they all would at some point need me to help them kill.

For that reason shouldn't I be the one calling the shots? I was not confident enough in myself to challenge Jack, but I was no longer the small timid boy on the inside. I was sure it didn't look that way on the outside either.

I sat early in roll call and instead of hunching over the desk quietly with my long light brown fringe obscuring my face, it had been brushed to the side. My eyes were now visible to everyone in the room, and I sat back in my chair confidently with my arms on the desk in front of me.

It seems Jack was right. The only way for me to become a regular turn holder of the death note again, was if he were to die. He seemed adamant. Hannah still talked to me when I spoke to her, but she was distant and untrusting.

Ethan was the only one who was kind to me. I didn't want them to know how I used the death note. I was afraid they would judge me as a sicko. As for the raven haired bespectacled boy, I don't know what I'd do if his friendly smile was replaced by a look of disgust.

It was pretty obvious that he liked Hannah. She either didn't notice or didn't care. It was how he would always defend her and care about her. He defended me too but that was because of his own goodness, not because he felt the same way about me that I felt about him.

As winter had set in everyone had started wearing their maroon coloured blazers and jumpers. Wasn't Global Warming supposed to be making everything hotter? It seemed that lately in Brisbane the weather had been acting erratic, unnatural.

Sure enough, it started to rain. There was a faint tapping noise against the glass as flecks of rain pattered against it gently. I watched them trickle down. Ethan would never feel the same way about me that he felt about Hannah.

She didn't even care. If I could be liked by him, I would never let him be unhappy. There was no way I would let Ethan know what I actually used the death note for. That was why I hadn't returned all of the pages I had stolen.

Since I started using the death note to manipulate men, I had filled up a whole double page and half of another one. I had thrown away the first page but I still had four more. I had given three of them back out of guilt.

There was no way I could show them the fourth page. Even if I tried to scribble out what I had written or tear it off, I just couldn't risk it. I was too ashamed, especially of what Ethan would think of me.

I didn't notice Ethan until the start of this year, when we had been put into the same roll call class. He wasn't very tall, but I was still shorter than he was. He was slim but not quite as slim as I was either.

He always seemed so cold and quiet. I thought for sure he was having troubles at home or with family. I wasn't in any of his classes, but he seemed intelligent.

Every roll call class I would stare at him when I thought he wasn't looking. Sometimes he would catch me and I would feel sick in the pit of my stomach, but at the same time I would feel terrifying excitement. I was sure he would have noticed my feelings by now.

Then I became involved in the death note after Hannah and I had found Jack and Ethan fighting over the notebook in the front office. Who would have thought that the mysterious and scowling boy would have been so nice to me? He even said that he considered me his _friend_.

Before I had known about the death note, being his friend was more than I could have ever hoped to be. Maybe it was the influence of the note, or the fact I had stopped using it for sexual gratification, but I wasn't so satisfied by just the idea of friendship anymore.

The fourth page remained unused hidden under papers in the bottom drawer of my desk. At first I was infatuated by Ethan. I couldn't envision sexual scenarios between us because just imagining his face had been too frightening.

Messing with straight boys had been fun, but now I wanted to know what it would be like to be intimate with someone who could make my heart beat faster just by being in the same room with me. Not that I could ever write Ethan's name on the spare page I kept hidden away.

The door opened and he walked in. Ethan's hair was plastered to his head in a way that made me even more attracted to him. He paused once inside to take off his glasses and wipe away the droplets with the sleeve of his jumper.

By the time he put his glasses back on he could see me waving to him from where I sat. He returned my smile and made his way to sit next to me.

"Good Morning, Ethan!" I greeted eagerly.

"Morning." He was more casual and dropped his bag as he sat down in the seat next to me. What followed from that was meaningless conversation. I asked him about how his day had been so far, we didn't go into much detail.

I tried smiling a lot, but he seemed as clueless as ever. Maybe he was distracted by something today. We were forbidden by Jack to discuss the death note outside of our meeting place in the usually abandoned art room.

As we talked Ethan didn't keep much eye contact. It seemed something really was on his mind. That made it easier for me to look at him. The line of his jaw, the nape of his neck as well as the contours of his collarbones.

As opposed to following his words, I found myself getting lost in the deep tones that his voice would make. Very subtly, I moved my knee until it was touching his under the table. Ethan didn't react.

I pushed further until our thighs were touching. His dark eyes flickered to me and away from under his glasses before he shifted apart from me. I instantly recoiled and looked away, a blush covering my face.

Only he could still make me act like this! As if I was the same person and nothing had changed. We didn't talk for the rest of roll call, except for when Mrs. Lee called out our names. Ethan responded with his usual 'here' while the rest of us answered simply with a 'yes'.

It wasn't true though. Not everything had changed about me. I still acted shy upon confrontations with bullies and talking with people I didn't know. The cutting hadn't stopped either, although I stopped crying when I did it.

The bell rang and everyone stood to leave. I let Ethan go in front of me and followed him out with the stream of students. When we were outside I called to him again.

"Ethan." He stopped and turned around.

"Yes?" I looked about anxiously as I waited for the other teenagers around us to head off to their classrooms. "What is it?" We were fairly alone, at the most no one was turned in our direction. His face observed me with curiosity and mild concern.

I stepped forward and onto the tips of my toes. I felt our soft lips crush into each other as I kissed him. My already hastily beating heart became unreadable. The whole world around me seemed to blur and it was as if my stomach had leapt into my chest.

Nothing else existed. I felt light headed and dizzy. My eyes were screwed closed.

It had only been an instant, but Ethan's hands were soon pressed against both of my shoulders and pushing me away from him. I was wide-eyed while I looked up at him. His expression was filled with alarm and afterwards a fearful understanding.

He was too shocked to say anything to me, but there was something else that tainted his emotions. It was disgust. He only looked at me a moment longer before he backed away a few steps, turned and then hurried away.

I had ruined everything.

Ethan:

It was lunch time, and I sat in the art room with Hannah. Gallu was seated in the corner of the room away from us, and he was acting unusually quiet. Hannah looked irritated and she began to tap her foot impatiently.

It was understandable that she would be so uneasy. Jack was currently in possession of the death note, but it seemed like he hadn't come to school today. It was just the three of us alone together.

Recently we would receive updates everyday about the current owner's use of the death note. It was perfectly understandable that Jack might have been feeling too ill to go to school today. Maybe it was just the morbid weather, but for some reason I had a bad feeling.

The slight rain from this morning had started pelting down loudly against the glass window. Even so, the curtains were drawn. Despite the fact that Jack was the owner of the death note, I felt more anxious that Billy wasn't here.

Or maybe it was better that he wasn't here? I had definitely hurt his feelings before, but what had he been thinking? I remembered all the times he had smiled at me, talked to me eagerly and listened to me just as eagerly.

I remembered before I had even spoken to him, catching him looking at me in roll call. _How could I have been so dense? _I did feel a bit sorry for him but at the same time I felt extremely averted to the small teen.

He was always shy with me, but he had seemed that way to everyone. I really liked Billy, but that was because he was so nice and easy to talk to. Now that I think about it, I had only seen him talk like that to me.

I wasn't judgemental. It was perfectly fine with me if Billy was gay. It was a bit off-putting that he liked me, I'll admit. The real reason I didn't want to see him was because he had _kissed_ me! Who does that?

Surely there's no way he could have misinterpreted something and thought that I was gay and liked him too. Was there? I looked over at Hannah while she sat quietly with a scowl on her face.

Hannah wasn't like other girls. That was evident to anyone just by looking at her. She wore black, her mascara might be a little too dark and she loves music. Her earphones are almost always in when she's by herself and the music she listens to is more often than not a bit gloomy.

Even when she wasn't listening to music she often has to ask 'what?' if she wasn't paying complete attention. Through all the walls she builds and all her attempts to keep people out I could tell that deep down inside she was just lonely.

We were friends now, all four of us. Me, Jack, Hannah and Billy. Even if Jack didn't want to think it and even if Billy had randomly kissed me, all of us were friends. Hannah treated us all differently now, and I was sure she would be coming to the same conclusion.

Surely, soon enough she would open up completely. I noticed something in the corner of my eye and looked to see that Hannah had a strand of her long blonde hair in her fingers. Distractedly she started to twirl it around.

Hannah's hair colour was blonde and too curly to be considered wavy, but straight enough that it reached half-way down her back. There were tints of brown in it that made it look darker than normal blonde.

Whenever we were in the sun however, I could see the tints of gold reflected in them. I watched her for a moment. I opened my mouth to say something, maybe to complement her, but I quickly stopped myself.

She noticed I was looking at her and our eyes held. We stared for a few seconds before Hannah looked away. I felt incredibly embarrassed and my face flared up. If Gallu had noticed he didn't say anything, but remained as still as a statue in the corner of the room.

Hannah let her hair fall over her shoulder as if she was hiding herself from me. Whenever it was my turn to hold the death note I would check to see how many people the other three had killed. I recognised Hannah's neater writing.

She had fully embraced Jack's ideals about using it for selfish reasons. She murdered and stole with the notebook's power. I have no idea what kind of person she was before she started using the death note.

Now that she's changed so much, just like the rest of them, I don't think I could ever bring myself to be with her. Not while she killed. Ever since I had used the notebook to kill Reece Caldon my life had taken a turn for the better.

I was no longer afraid of getting beaten when I went home. Even if we had less money and my mother had started drinking more, I was sure this was a better life for both of us. My brother stepped in and eventually decided to help with my school fees.

Something that surprised me, but I was grateful to him. Even if he didn't come by to talk anymore. I think it was how much better my life had become because of that one death that convinced me that the death note wasn't all that bad.

When I had first used it I had decided it was a thing of evil and had tried to get rid of it. When I found out Jack had found it I had tried to get it back, but only so that it wouldn't be used against me. Now we all shared ownership of the notebook, but I was still too apprehensive to use it.

Even after all this time. I turned to look at Hannah again.

"Have you tried calling Jack? He might be able to pick up." Her head snapped up.

"I have tried. His phone's been turned off."

I frowned. Hannah seemed to have thought of something and pulled out her phone. She dialled a number and started talking to someone. I wondered if Jack had managed to pick up.

I tried listening in to the conversation but I couldn't gauge much as it was mostly one-word answers and questions from Hannah's end. Eventually she said "I'll be there." Before closing her mobile.

She answered my questioning stare. "That was Billy." My face fell slightly as I recalled earlier today. "He doesn't know where Jack is either. He's sitting in the library right now, there's probably more to do there then there is here."

She stood up. "Are you coming?"

"Maybe later." I told her. I still didn't want to see Billy at the moment. She nodded and then left without any questions.

The door closed behind her and it was just me and Gallu in the room. The red Shinigami didn't say anything and I didn't try to force him into conversation. I leaned back in my seat and yawned loudly.

I sat there pondering for the next few minutes. With no talking between us the only noise was the deafening rain in the background. Eventually I was alerted to pounding on the door. I jumped out of my seat and hurried over.

I opened the door. A girl in my year with brown hair tied back into a ponytail was crying. I stared at her in horror. Her makeup was running down her face while she sobbed.

"Ethan, c-can I come in?"

I stepped aside to let the wailing girl inside. I closed the door behind her. I knew who she was, her name is Emma and she's in my Maths class. We've never talked to each other, but I knew from Jack that she was his girlfriend.

The one he had been meaning to dump since forever. Perhaps he had finally managed to do it?

"Emma, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

She sat down shakily and wiped her eyes. Emma looked around the room and she paused when her eyes reached the corner by the window. Suddenly she seemed very uncomfortable and kept her eyes focussed on me.

"It's Jack." She said and tears began to flow again. _Knew it_. I thought to myself. She must have known this was going to happen though, he spent every day with Hannah, Billy and I. Well if I believed anything about love, it was that it is blind.

Billy, my mother and Hannah had shown me that much. She started crying again.

"What's wrong with Jack?" I spoke calmly, trying to soothe her.

"He's _dead_."

I froze.

"What did you just say?"

"He died of a heart attack. His parents just called me!" She hid her face in her hands.

A million thoughts whizzed about my head. _There's no way this could be a coincidence. A heart attack? Billy, it has to be Billy! Why would he kill Jack? So that he would be able to use the death note again?_

_ Jack had said '_as long as I'm alive, you won't have another turn at it_'. So had he killed him? No, that didn't make sense. If Billy had killed Jack, why would he have done it with a heart attack? That's the most obvious indicator that Jack was murdered._

_ Also, if he wanted the death note, why didn't he kill Hannah and me so that he could have it all to himself? _I recalled Billy kissing me only hours before and I gulped. _Maybe he only wanted Jack to die?_

_ If he was the one that killed him and he intended to leave the rest of us alive, there would be no point in hiding that fact when I next see him_. Another thought occurred to me: _Jack was the one in possession of the death note. So where is it now?_

_ Did Billy kill him with a piece of the notebook? He had stolen pages before so it could mean he has more. If that was the case why not just hand in one piece to begin with so Hannah could kill the thief?_

_ Unless he handed in three so that we would assume that was all of them. Handing in two pages to begin with would have been suspicious, and handing in one page would have become suspicious now._

_ So was that his plan?_ I turned to the quietly sobbing girl.

"I'm going to get two other people and bring them here. Is that okay?" She nodded weakly, too traumatised to argue.

If Billy had killed Jack, it was too dangerous to leave Hannah alone with him. Especially if he knows what I think about her…

First things first, I have to go to the library. Then when I'm sure Hannah is safe, we need to find the death note if Billy doesn't have it already. If Emma's correct and Jack really is dead, the death note could already be in the possession of his parents or the police.

I guess it depends on where he died. Before I left I glared at Gallu who was still sitting quietly in the corner of the room. Since Jack was the one who had been in possession of the death note Gallu should have been with him.

I had thought it was strange that he had been here when Jack wasn't. Gallu hadn't said anything to me and Hannah when we were sitting in the same room as him all that time. _Damn Shinigami_.

I turned and left the room, and the red demon-like creature didn't try to follow me.

**Could it be? Is Jack really dead? If so, who killed him? The only way to know for sure is to read on! Review?**


	12. Ultimatum

**Ethan is about to discover if there is truth behind Emma's words. How will the other children react?**

Ethan:

The entrance to the school library was only a few metres away. I paced towards it quickly, wondering what on Earth I was going to say to Billy. Before I could reach the double doors I was intercepted and my path became blocked by Ms. Leroy, my Earth and Environment teacher.

When she looked at me her expression was sombre and very serious.

"Ethan Jones. You need to come with me right now."

I paused, taken aback by the urgency in her mildly accentuated words.

"I have to see my friends-"

"Would these friends be William and Hannah?"

For the second time I felt taken aback by her.

"Yes."

"They are waiting for you in Mr. Harris's office. We have important matters to discuss."

Uncertainly I walked with Ms. Leroy in the direction of Mr. Harris's office in the administration block of the school. Does this have something to do with the death note? If not, then why were only me and the other two being interrogated and not Emma?

It may have been noticed by teachers that the four of us often sat with each other at lunch, but still. I suppose I would see when I got there. After we headed into the administrative block, Ms. Leroy walked me to Mr. Harris's office and opened the door.

Inside I was shocked to see a couple of police officers in their uniforms. Standing in the corner of the room I could see Mrs. Mirsky the school principal, dressed as usual in vibrant shades of pink. She looked just as sombre as my escort while she observed three seats in the room.

Mr. Harris was beside her. He was wearing his typical suit and tie and his bald head seemed to be shinier than usual. Maybe from the rain?

"Thank you, Miranda." He said and Ms. Leroy nodded before closing the door behind me and leaving.

One of the seats was empty. It was closest to me; the one in the middle was occupied by Hannah and the one on the other side seated Billy. Hannah looked at me with wide eyes and I knew they had already been told about Jack. I felt my stomach drop.

Billy wasn't looking at me but the way he fidgeted in his stool showed he was incredibly uncomfortable.

"Please take a seat." One of the officers quietly ordered.

I walked over and sat.

"So it's true then?" I asked shakily. "Jack's really _dead_." I heard my voice crack pathetically at the end of my statement.

He had been indisputably the leader of our group, he had organised us. Jack may have been a pot head and a rebel, but he was intelligent, resourceful, witty and he had always been suspicious and untrusting. Not that it had seemed to do him any good.

The fact I knew of his death seemed like a surprise to the officers and the two teachers. However they quickly recovered and the brown haired officer who had spoken to me first continued.

"You must be wondering why the three of you were summoned here.

"It is true, at 7:09 last night we received a call from Jack's parents saying that they had found their son dead in his room. He had been sitting behind his desk when he suffered a heart attack and passed." The voice of the policeman seemed hollow to me.

It was as if I was hearing everything through a filter. I couldn't look the policeman in the eyes, instead I kept my unregistering vision on the carpet floor. "When we arrived at his house, we found something peculiar on his desk in front of him. It appeared to be a suicide note."

My eyes widened and I felt all three of our heads shoot up to look at the officer. _A suicide note? When he died of a heart attack. How can this be? _"There was an autopsy done this morning, it proved that the heart attack occurred naturally-"

Billy coughed savagely into his hand as if he were gagging. His shock didn't appear faked, but how is that so? Billy himself had told us Jack's lifespan seemed comparably average, and the only way anyone can die before their predetermined time was if they were killed by the death note.

I still didn't trust him. Billy seemed to recover and the policeman continued. He turned to the desk and picked up a piece of paper. We all recognised it as a page of the death note. "Analysis proved that it was Jack's handwriting."

He cleared his throat and began to read: "'To Ethan, Hannah and Billy. I have come to realize the true evil of the notebook. As long as it remains within the reach of humans, people will continue to die.

I have decided to take it upon myself to destroy it and I have succeeded, all that is left of it is this page which will be taken in as evidence. I pray you will not succumb to the monster that it was turning us into. Farewell.

Jack Martin.'" He looked up to see our faces. Mine was frozen in shock and utter astonishment. I heard Hannah mutter darkly from beside me.

"God damn you, Jack."

Billy made a noise reminiscent of a squeak that shook with his body. _Destroyed? Jack had the death note destroyed? No, that can't be! _He_ was the one who didn't care about human life! _He_ was the one who first killed for amusement!_

_ Even if he did have a change of heart and wanted the death note destroyed, why did he have to write his name on the page and kill himself? He could have simply burned the book and erased his memories by removing the piece of the death note?_

_ But… then we would of… then he could have just… so does that mean it might have been… murder?_

My eyes narrowed. This had almost convinced me, if it weren't for the fact I knew Jack so well.

_If_ he was murdered then that would mean the death note is still out there. Regardless of whether it was Billy, or… a new player, a new thief.

_No. No one should know of its existence and this is far too well thought out._

Unless someone discovered it somehow, all of the evidence points to Billy. From the beginning I could deduce that Jack, Hannah and I were all clever. Could Billy secretly have been just as clever? I couldn't see his expression, but it seemed like he was just as shocked as we are. Hannah and I were still alive, until he decided to kill us.

He could have manipulated Jack's moment before death, and made him write down his own name on a page of the death note so that it looked like Jack had killed himself when his name had already been written down before that.

There was only one person that would know all the answers. Even if he would be reluctant to say much. I would have to find Gallu.

Gallu:

I remained in the room after Ethan had left. Now it was just me and the crying girl, although as soon as the door closed she had stopped crying. Her eyes were on the ground and I stood so as to stretch my long limbs.

"You can see me, can't you?" Her eyes suddenly made contact with mine.

"Forgive my manners, but I'm not too sure how I should act. This is the first time I've been acquainted with a Shinigami." The young girl said while she wiped the smudged makeup from under her eyes.

She was a lot better at it than Hannah was, I could tell even though it had been ruined by tears.

"Too bad I wasn't around when you killed Jack. Imagine my surprise when I found him dead and the death note missing.

"That note of yours had almost fooled me. I was just so worried that I would never find who the new owner of the death note was. It was you, Emma King." She smiled. "Jack was always so secret about his personal life. If they had known you two had broken up a week ago like I had they may have very well suspected you."

"But they don't know that."

"Now I doubt they ever will, your performance was excellent by the way." The girl named '_Emma King_' lay back in her seat and sighed. Underneath her name I could see her lifespan: '_110844123_'.

"What gave me away?"

"Your eyes did. You were purposely avoiding making eye contact with me when you scanned the room."

"Is that so? Thanks for not telling Ethan when he was here. I read my new book carefully, that's how I know what you are. _'Gods of death in principle don't do anything to help or prevent the deaths in the notebook'_."

"You're right. We only observe. I have no loyalties, not to any of those humans, or to you." Emily sat forward in her chair, she put her handbag onto her lap and pulled out the small black notebook. On it, printed in a strange white font all in capitals was the familiar title.

'DEATH NOTE'. "I have many questions. I'm a curious guy."

"What do you want to know, Shinigami?"

"Please, call me Gallu. As for what I wish to know: how, why and what do you plan to do next?"

"Those questions are all very general."

"I think I should start off with a general knowledge of the situation. Then we can start to go into detail." The young girl sighed and then smiled to herself.

"Very well. A general explanation:

"It was many months ago. Before me and Jack had broken up. I had found his notebook when I was going through his school bag.

"I read it, all of it. Then I put it back. The next time I saw Jack it was at a distance. I wanted to ask him about it, but while I was still at some distance away I saw you fly over to him." She cringed slightly. "I thought I was crazy.

"But I remained calm. I decided to look up some of the names I had seen in the book and discovered that those people had died, and recently. Their deaths had also been labelled as suspicious although natural by the media.

"The first death that stood out was 'Reece Caldon'. Afterwards all the names were in English. I noticed there were four different types of handwriting, so I knew he was not doing it alone. He always spent so much time with those other three: Ethan, Hannah and Billy.

"It was strange that he would suddenly start hanging around and talking to people I would have never imagined he would get along with." I laughed quietly to myself. _Emma had seen Jack, Hannah and Billy's handwriting. _

_She must have also seen Vincent's writing, the guy Jack controlled to kill that drug lord. She probably assumed it was one of the other's handwriting. How amusing. _"Then he went and dumped me! After all I'd done for him!"

She quietened down, so no one would hear her probably. "So I stole it from him the next time I found it in his bag. I thought of it all myself. I made it look like Jack had killed himself after supposedly destroying the book.

"Now it's all mine." Her grip tightened. "I've seen what they've written in here. Killing for money and drugs. Pathetic and petty criminals they are. With no imagination. I could become a politician, and I could use this notebook to kill off all the powers of other nations on the planet.

"I could cause governments all around the Earth to collapse; America would no longer be the most powerful country. By the use of this book, I could eliminate all threats to Australia and become dictator of a new world! My world!"

I gave a respectful silence. _A human who covets the world. It's not unheard of even in the Shinigami realm. She's much more ambitious than any of the other children, that's for sure. _

"I heard that opposites attract, but if anything you're even more wicked than Jack ever was."

Emma laughed.

"Of course, don't you see? He was the nice one in our relationship." _With the death note in the hands of this girl, this world will change_.

_She wishes to become like a god figure, only instead of hiding in the shadows she wants to be known_.

"Sounds a lot like world domination to me."

"My parents told me to plan big, you see."

"Oh?"

"It will take a while, years until I finish school with the marks I need to make it into politics and then become a member of parliament."

Her eyes seemed manic. "But from there I will begin to change the world."

"There's still a few holes in this plan."

"What?" She snapped rudely.

_Jack was right. She is bossy_. I thought before continuing.

"The others would never believe that Jack would destroy the death note. You got lucky with Ethan."

"What do you mean?"

I leapt towards her suddenly. She recoiled away from my face. _Curse these exuberant movements, they always happen when I get excited_.

"I mean, if Ethan had the Shinigami eyes he would have known immediately that you were in possession of the death note.

"One who possesses the Shinigami eyes can't see the lifespan of a human who owns a death note. He just said he was bringing back two other people. I wonder which two he could have meant?" Emma's face whitened in realization.

My smile broadened. "They'll be here soon. If one or both of them possess the Shinigami eyes you'll be exposed. Based on the fact you left them alive I'm guessing you're not all that certain about their surnames either, are you?"

I analysed her as she sat quietly. "Would you like to become certain?" Emma looked up at me, her expression serious.

Ethan:

In the end all three of us were released when we claimed to have no idea what Jack had meant in his letter. They didn't have any choice, considering the police had no solid proof to connect us to his death aside from the suspicious note Jack had left. Billy split almost immediately.

He said he wasn't feeling well and Mrs. Mirsky agreed to have his mother called to pick him up. Just as well, I needed to confer my suspicions to Hannah alone. We made our way towards the abandoned art room to discuss what had happened.

When I opened the doors to the art block I stopped when I noticed Emma standing on the other side. She froze and glanced at me before staring directly at Hannah. For whatever reason it looked as if she were afraid as she studied Hannah's expression.

"Oh, Emma? Are you feeling alright?" I could tell Hannah was surprised by the look she was getting, too. Emma seemed slightly relieved, as if she had mistaken Hannah for someone else.

"I need to be alone right now."

She whispered and pushed through us. I turned to watch her hasty retreat.

"So is that how you knew about Jack before, Emma told you?" I nodded to Hannah and then continued inside.

We both made our way into the abandoned art room. This room held a lot of memories. It was the first place we had all gone when we agreed to join forces and share the death note. Now we might never see the notebook ever again.

Not that I was bothered by that in particular. Although I'm sure it was for that reason that Hannah still seemed dazed right now. The only thing that bothered me was that there was a slim chance that Jack had not ended his own life.

As slim as that chance was, if there is a killer the main suspect would have to be Billy. If not, there was an even slimmer chance that there was a new player in this game. "Gallu isn't here." Hannah observed. "Probably went back to that Shinigami realm he mentioned."

"I don't think so."

"How do you figure?"

"He's probably with the new owner of the Death Note."

Hannah's eyes widened as I explained my theory to her. She didn't seem accepting at first, but as she let me continue I could tell that things I was saying were starting to click together in her mind. "I agree with you.

"All the evidence points to Jack destroying the death note. He was always so secretive, I guess it is impossible to really know someone. However, if there is a slim chance that it was murder we have to be sure!"

Hannah looked down and her forehead creased. "What is it?"

"I was just thinking about Emma. It was really weird how she was looking at me."

"How so?"

"Well, usually since she had seen me with Jack she would always glare. She was one of those snobby popular bitches, you know? Just then… it seemed almost as if she was intimidated by _me_."

"She's not in the right state of mind at the moment. She was just told that Jack is dead." It didn't feel right to say that. I hadn't seen his body. Jack still seemed alive to me, just somewhere far away. _How long would this feeling last?_

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"Now we just need to think of how to be sure someone else doesn't have the death note. We've already agreed that if it does still exist it is most likely in Billy's possession."

I had been a little worried Hannah would become angry at me for mentioning my suspicions of Billy. It was plain from her face that she still didn't trust him from when he had stolen pages from the notebook.

She had been averted to the idea that he would have more pages however, instead saying it was far more likely he would have stolen the death note from Jack first.

"In all honesty, I'm surprised Jack hadn't noticed Billy had stolen pages before he told us about it."

"Huh?" Hannah looked up at me from her seat.

"I never mentioned this before, but I was flicking through the death note once when it was mine and I saw something sort of strange.

"I found crease marks on some of the pages, as if a small part of a corner had been folded back and then flattened again. When I paid more attention I realised someone had been folding back a corner exactly every ten pages."

"Someone had been counting the pages?"

"Seems like it. I thought it might have been Jack, making sure we didn't steal any of the pages like we promised. It sounded like something he would do.

"The only strange thing is I noticed the creased pages before the death note was stolen."

"Does that mean Billy was counting pages?"

"I don't think so. Why would he need to if he was going to steal pages anyway? After all, anyone could use that counting system now. It seems too cautious for him as well. Someone was being very careful that they didn't miscount.

"It's that compulsiveness which reminded me of Jack."

"I didn't count the pages of the death note." I told Hannah. "If Jack had counted them it means he should have noticed that Billy had stolen pages before he confessed to it. So why didn't he say anything?"

Hannah shrugged.

"Either way, I think we should take a visit to Billy's house after school." Since I had gotten the feeling the four of us were all becoming friends, we had been told each other's addresses.

Not that we had ever gone over to visit each other outside of school. The thought still made me sad, and made me suspect Billy less. Even so, the death note undeniably changed people. Billy was still our major suspect.

"What will going to Billy's house accomplish?"

"If he is the current owner of the death note, as you suspect, Gallu will have to be nearby or at least be returning to him soon."

…..

The plan was a blunt one. Very straight forward. If Billy had the death note Gallu would be forced to follow him, there would be no way he could lie out of that. Not only will this plan let us know if Billy is the murderer but it will also prove his innocence if the notebook truly was destroyed.

Billy's mother looked a lot like him, having his honey brown hair and bright blue eyes. She was a quiet and gentle person. She had been very kind to us, it seems that before Billy had become involved with the death note he hadn't had any friends.

It appeared to overjoy her that her son had companions who cared enough to check up on him. I registered slight wrinkles and laugh lines on her face. It had been a long time since I had seen _my_ mother smile.

"He wasn't looking well at all when I picked him up from school. Went straight to his room and hasn't been out since." She pointed us to his room and the two of us declined her offer to make snacks for our gathering.

Her politeness set me a bit on edge. She had even asked for our names and seemed genuinely interested, as if committing us to memory. At least she gave us space and let us speak with Billy alone.

Hannah knocked on his door.

"Billy?" No response. "Billy, it's me. Ethan's here too." Getting no answer she opened the door.

What awaited us would haunt me for the rest of my life. For however long I had left to live, because the chances of me living to the end of my natural lifespan now seemed debateable. Hannah and I no longer suspected that Jack had been murdered.

Now we knew he had. We no longer suspected that Billy was guilty. We knew he was innocent. We no longer suspected the death note had been destroyed. We knew it still existed, not only that. It was being used.

Inside of Billy's room there was a lot of blood. It seemed Billy had been cutting himself… to death. He was lying on his bed with his face turned in our direction. A single tear had made a trail down his pale white face.

Sure, on its own this wouldn't mean that he had been killed by the death note. There was a message written in blood on the wall above the bed and Billy's lifeless form. It read: '_Shadow was not one, all four of us are guilty: Jack, Billy, Hannah and Ethan'_.

Neither of us could speak. I heard gagging noises coming from the girl next to me. Hannah's knees started to shake and it seemed like she was going to collapse. Quickly I grabbed her by the arm and turned away.

We left the house without saying a word to Mrs. Taylor. Hannah didn't try to fight me as I led her onto the street and away. I didn't know where to go but we had to get away. Someone had controlled Jack with the death note.

In his letter the four of us were mentioned. Billy had also left a dying message singling out the four of us. Whoever had the death note knew all four of us had been involved. They had already gotten to Jack and Billy.

They could kill Hannah and me at any given moment. Unless I figure out who is killing us first, but we may have already run out of time!

**How evil! Emma has stolen the death note and murdered both Jack and Billy! Ethan and Hannah must figure a way out of this fast! It all ends next chapter. Review? **


	13. Revolution

**Scared and feeling cornered, the two remaining children make their escape and desperately formulate a plan to save themselves.**

Ethan:

I don't know how long we walked. Turning at several streets, I led Hannah away as if being hidden would keep us safe. Eventually it proved too much for her and she insisted on stopping once we came across an empty real estate property.

Up until then I had been supporting her while we had slowly and numbly escaped. Now she leaned back against a tree and I took a few steps away to give her space to breathe. Feeling a sudden wave of vertigo I fell to my hands and knees.

The adrenaline rush had served me well in getting us away from Billy's house. Now as it faded horrible realization took its place as I was crushed by the gravity of what I had witnessed. Billy was dead, he had been murdered.

Jack's death had been suspicious, but it was Billy who had confirmed it. Hannah and I were the only ones left. No doubt one of us would be this new killer's next target. The image of Billy's bloody corpse flashed into my mind and I heard Hannah throw up from behind me.

I did the same and my vision was shaking. I collapsed forward and we both stayed like that for a while. Hannah huddled over at the base of the tree and me lying in the grass pathetically in a pool of my own sick.

It was evening when I had finally found the strength to get back on my feet. I approached Hannah where she sat. She didn't look up at me until I extended my hand to her.

"We have to go. We can't waste any more time here."

She stared at me confusedly. "Whoever killed Jack and Billy will be after us next." I saw strength manifesting in the young girl's eyes. Ignoring the fact there was a large stain of puke on my jumper she took my hand and I helped her up.

We were both only teenagers. We didn't know death other than what was depicted in movies and stories. Desensitized we had always tried to understand what it would be like to be in this situation.

I understood now that nothing could have prepared us.

We weren't adults. Hannah and I weren't able to fight our way onto our feet because we fully understood or could cope with our situation. It was instincts, from the very core of our being we knew that our lives were in jeopardy.

We had to do what we could to survive. Our bodies seemed to understand that in a primitive way. For that reason we managed to make it to my house hand in hand and get ourselves cleaned up.

I had changed clothes while Hannah cleaned herself in the bathroom. When she was done I brushed my teeth thoroughly while she spoke to me from the other room.

"Your Mum isn't home."

I spat into the sink.

"Ever since Reece died she's been out of the house a lot." When I finished I went to the living room. I fetched two glasses of water and Hannah thanked me as I sat on the table across from her.

Her hand shook violently as she tried to bring the drink to her mouth. She used her other hand to keep her arm still. We both drank and put the glasses back onto the table. I began speaking.

"Someone out there has the death note." Hannah was still pale but I could tell she was registering what I was saying. "Whoever they are, they killed Jack and they killed Billy. They will try to kill one of us next. I just don't understand why they're doing it one at a time."

"Somehow they know all four of us." Hannah began. "That means they might already know where we live. So coming here was predictable. Not that it matters, since the death note can kill us no matter where we are."

"Running isn't an option." I mused out loud. "We can't even fake our deaths. This killer will probably write our names anyway just to be sure." I looked Hannah in the eyes. "We have to fight."

She didn't say anything for a while. Looking down she traced the circle of her glass with the tip of her finger. Her brow creased.

"Jack had the death note when he was killed. That means it's most likely someone connected to him."

I nodded my agreement. Our trains of thought led us to the same person.

"Emma?" We both said sceptically. I continued.

"Whoever they are got the death note from Jack. It could just as easily be anyone else who was close to him. A friend, a parent?"

"I don't think a parent could kill their child." Hannah pointed out. "Either way Emma knew that Jack was spending a lot of time with the three of us. She also had a lot of opportunity to get close to the notebook through Jack. As it stands, she's the most likely suspect."

I frowned as I imagined the crying girl. I didn't want to believe it, but then other things began to click in my head as well. The look of fear in her eyes when she saw Hannah, how Gallu hadn't followed me out of the room when I had run off.

He had stayed behind… with Emma. When me and Hannah returned Emma had just been leaving. Gallu had not been in the empty art room when we got there. I was snapped out of my reverie when Hannah whispered quietly.

"Who is shadow?" I blinked and looked at her.

"I invented that alias in order to trap Jack at the front office that morning. That was when you saw the two of us fighting and first found out about the death note.

"Do you remember when all those vandalisms were happening at the school? That was me, I was doing it to lure Jack out and it worked."

"That was… pretty smart."

Hannah complimented briefly. "Does our murderer even know _that_ much about us as well?"

"Not necessarily. Everyone at school heard of the vandalisms and shadow. This person is probably trying to get us in trouble with the school, maybe so they can find out our names?"

_The fact that whoever he or she is knew about shadow makes it seem even more likely that the murderer is a fellow student. Surely a teacher wouldn't act on this kind of mentality?_

"So whoever he or she is… is trying to frame us… with a crime… that we actually did commit?"

Hannah slowly pieced it together incredulously. While she gazed off in her own thoughts I silently frowned at the table. There was enough evidence in my mind to convict Emma. I didn't say this out loud to Hannah for another reason.

I wanted to see her and be absolutely sure that she had the death note before we did anything rash. _Even so_, I thought to myself dejectedly. _What's the point of catching her if I'll just get killed after I do?_

If Emma did kill Jack and Ethan, she has the death note and we have nothing. No means to convict her, to stop her or to protect ourselves. My mind worked furiously as I analysed our situation. I sat bolt upright when inspiration struck me.

Hannah noticed and looked at me oddly.

"Did you come up with something?" I rose from the table.

"Yes. I'm heading out."

Silence.

"Huh?"

"There's somewhere I have to go." I turned and headed off to the front door.

Determination cementing my resolve.

"Wait! Where are we going?" I turned to look back at Hannah who had stood up as well.

"I'm going. You have to stay here. There's no point in both of us dying if this doesn't work."

Turning my back on her yet again, I reached for the door handle.

"Ethan!" I felt her body crash into me from behind. My eyes widened and I remained still as she held onto me. "I can't be left alone right now." Her voice was muffled through my shoulder.

I turned around to face Hannah and wrapped my own hands around to embrace her as well.

"Hannah." She looked up at me and I saw that her face was full of fear and uncertainty. "You have to do everything you can to survive." I told her.

She continued to stare at me with those pale green eyes of hers. I leaned forward and kissed her. Instantly she became stiff before I felt her relax into me. Feeling her hands travel upwards until they became entangled in my hair, she kissed back.

My own hands travelled to her waist as our lips moved against each other's. My heart was hammering, I was almost sure she would be able to hear my pulse. For some reason I knew hers would be beating just as fast.

I really cared about Hannah, I had for a long time. It seemed that by some miracle, for longer than this nightmare, she had cared about me too. While we became lost in our first kiss I began to slightly lift the bottom of her shirt.

There was a faint ripping noise. Hannah jerked away from me, looking at me with a sharp expression. Her face registered a few emotions to me. Shock which became betrayal until eventually her expression became dazed and unfocussed.

I stepped away from her. She blinked and stared at me, recognition dawning on her face far too slowly. I was out of the house before she could say anything, and I was sure she wouldn't follow. Walking away from my house I passed a garbage bin which had been carried out early by the neighbours for collection next morning.

Opening the bin as I passed I slipped the tiny piece of the death note attached to the tape in, then continued walking. Since Hannah isn't currently in possession of the death note all her memories would have vanished when I removed that piece of paper from her body.

I did feel bad, but it was the best way to keep her safe. She would probably still remember seeing Billy's body which is why I didn't tell her where I was going. It would be a hassle for me if she called the police and they intervened and got in the way.

At least if she was killed she wouldn't spend her last moments in fear of her life. I fixed up my glasses, pushing them up the bridge of my nose. All that was left was up to me. I knew exactly where I needed to be: Jack's house.

Emma:

I lowered my mobile phone and pocketed it after I blackened the screen. My Mummy had just texted me, asking to know where I was. Apparently Ethan had stopped by at my house to see me. Not that it mattered, I had left her a message explaining exactly where I was.

Soon Ethan would arrive. My third victim would come to me to be slaughtered. A wicked grin stretched across my face while my feet tapped impatiently on the concrete floor. The noise echoed throughout the brightly lit abandoned warehouse.

I could hear the noise of the rain on the metal roof. It muffled the liquid onslaught in a satisfying way. This warehouse was one of the many owned by my Daddy's shipping company.

It wasn't being used so I had been given his permission to _play_ in it for a while. It seemed like the perfect setting for Ethan to be confronted by the girl who had been responsible for killing two of his friends. Whether he knew or suspected I currently owned the death note I did not know.

The bespectacled boy must have gone to my ex's house. He would have asked Jack's parents where I lived, told them he was worried about me. I laughed and that noise also echoed in the large empty space.

All that was inside the clean metal and concrete building was a small plastic chair that I had carried inside. I sat in the middle of the room, facing the door. My legs were crossed and my hands rested casually in my lap.

The death note was lying under my hands. In my right grip, I was armoured with a pen. The feeling of the death note resting atop my legs was a comfort to me. With it, all of my dreams would come true.

Gallu had been following me around ever since I left school today. In my opinion the Shinigami was nothing short of an irritation. I had managed to order him to leave me alone while I waited, waited for my next victim.

I couldn't wait to see his expression! Would he look surprised? Afraid? Or better yet, would he put on a brave face while his voice cracks and his knees shake? I wonder if he'll beg? Or maybe he'll try swearing his undying loyalty to me?

I didn't usually like being uncertain… about anything. With this death note my victory is assured. There was no way Ethan or Hannah could stop me, which is why this kind of uncertainty entertained me.

The uncertainty of what kind of doom will Ethan enact for me. The reason I hadn't killed them yet was because I knew the two of them were no threat to me. After killing Jack I had planned to leave the others alone provided they had fallen for my set-up.

It was the damn god of death that forced my hand with the mention of the Shinigami eyes. I hadn't needed to kill Hannah or Ethan because I noticed neither of them possessed these eyes. If they had my deception would have been revealed when I exited the art block today.

Considering I didn't know if Billy had that weapon or not, I killed him anyway for good measure. Since after killing him it would become obvious to the other two that they _were_ being murdered, I had decided that in my frustration I might make a game out of it.

It was so obvious Billy had been a cutter anyway. Now the other two would be running scared and alone. Or so I had thought. Instead Ethan had the audacity to approach me himself, and for what reason?

Soon, it will all be revealed. Soon, he will walk through that door and come face to face with death itself. Several more minutes passed and the building tension had almost driven me crazy. I heard a noise from behind the front door and I knew that my prey had finally arrived.

Slowly the door was forced open and Ethan made his way inside. He stepped forward out of the rain and pulled off his glasses. He cleaned them with the sleeve of his jumper before setting them back into place.

I smiled at him calmly as he looked at me. His name was clear to me above his face. _Ethan Jones_. Giving up half of my life was a trivial sacrifice for this power. I didn't fancy growing old, and I figured I might as well leave a pretty corpse.

"How nice of you to visit, Ethan." His expression was firm and level-headed. I tilted my neck, becoming curious. I had imagined many scenarios of how this would play out, but I hadn't expected something like this.

Ethan was just calmly standing before me, with neither antagonism nor fear. He just seemed resolved to something. "Oh, I see." I spoke out loud. "You came here to die." The rain outside was the only thing that could be heard for a while.

"I'm not the one who is going to die, Emma."

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! REALLY?" He seemed completely unaffected by my outburst. I stared at him for a moment longer before closing my mouth.

The hand holding my pen twitched. "Then show me how you plan to stop me, Ethan Jones!" The death note was flicked open before I bent over and my pen darted to the page. I instantly began scrawling his name down but then stopped.

'Ethan J' was written in a messy scribble on the paper and I looked up to see the boy was still not moving. _Why? Why was he so confident? He wasn't even trying to stop me from killing him_.

"I don't understand you." He looked at me calmly and I gasped as I felt my body seize up.

"You are already dead, Emma King. You are the second and last person I will ever kill." I hazily recalled trying to get to my feet before the chair was knocked over and I fell forward into blackness.

Ethan:

My expression didn't change as I looked at the young brunette face-down on the floor in front of me. I reached into my pocket and scrunched the piece of paper which had Emma King's name written on it. A page from the death note. I tossed it towards a corner of the room.

I became aware that I was no longer alone when Gallu fell through the roof above and landed beside me. He large bat-like wings retracted and his face cracked into a hideous smile.

"You did it! You know Ethan, I was rooting for you all along. Jack had a horrible taste in women, that Emma girl was a _bitch!_"

I looked at my fallen enemy for a moment longer before I glanced at the towering seven foot tall Shinigami beside me. "So? How did you do it?"

"_I_ didn't do anything, it was all Jack."

Gallu's yellow eyes fixed on me confusedly. "You must have noticed that Jack was counting the pages of the death note." He blinked at me.

"Yes, I was aware."

"That means Jack was aware that Billy had taken pages out before he had confessed it himself."

"Oh. Meaning?"

"Jack wasn't trying to keep us from stealing pages. Instead he was looking for a way to be a step ahead without us noticing." The scaly red demon remained quiet as I continued. "When he was aware that pages were being stolen it meant he could take a page for himself.

"It would be undetected. If anyone found out the blame would fall on the person who had stolen the pages to begin with. This way he was covering up his own crime by mimicking another's."

"Wow. He must have been sneaky to have taken a page and hidden it without even me noticing.

"To think how harsh he was on Billy too. That kind of compulsive and paranoid behaviour definitely sounds like something Jack would do."

"He had hidden it in his room and since I knew what I was looking for I checked all the places where I thought he would hide it.

"It was the only conclusion as to why Jack would have known pages were being stolen but not said anything, because he had taken a page for himself." I walked past the Shinigami who eyed me as I stepped over Emma's body.

Plucking the death note from her cooling grip I held it tightly in my hands. I walked back to Gallu.

"You had already written her name before you walked inside the warehouse."

"Yes. The moment I saw you sitting on the roof I knew it had to be her. So I wrote down her name."

"If that's the case you didn't even need to walk in at all, you could have just waited."

My eyes narrowed as I looked ahead to the open doorway.

"First of all, I needed to see her."

"Why?"

"To make a decision. I wanted to see what this book had done to her. I wanted to see how it had influenced her. This notebook does change people. I may be happier now that Reece is dead, but I'm just a human. I have no right to judge others. I'm not a Shinigami."

"Then what's the second reason?"

"Even if she had killed me it wouldn't have changed a thing. She was already dead before I entered the building. If we had both killed each other the ownership of the death note would have been cancelled out."

"That's true." Gallu confirmed.

"In that case. You would have taken the death note, since it had no owner, and returned to wherever you came from. The Shinigami realm."

He stared down at me quietly. "It wouldn't have changed a thing, because I've made my decision. Humans aren't ready to have this power, it only corrupts. Sooner or later I would have turned out just like Jack or Emma."

"So you mean…?"

"I'm returning possession of the death note to you."

"Are you sure, Ethan? If you do this your memories, as well as Hannah's will disappear forever."

"Hannah has already lost her memories. I'm ready for this. A chance at a normal life is the best thing we should ever ask for." Gallu went quiet again as he analysed me. I half-expected him to laugh again for no reason, but this time he was strangely serious.

"You know… it's weird, but I actually kind of like you, Ethan. You're not like Jack or Hannah, but for some reason I really like you too. You know, as much as a Shinigami can like a human." I smiled despite myself.

He looked up to the roof. "I would have never suspected that dropping my death note would have led to this. I must admit, it was very exciting and interesting watching you all use my notebook for your own purposes and reason.

"The story I have for Ladon and the other Shinigami won't be as tedious or embarrassing as I had feared it would. It'll be a worthy tale to tell when I return to the Shinigami realm." Gallu went quiet and I began to mentally prepare myself for what was to come. _This is it_.

Soon I was going to lose all my memories of the death note, I would have to deal with the shadow dilemma and the shock from seeing the things I saw today. I wouldn't be alone though, I would have Hannah there beside me. An uninfluenced and no longer alone Hannah.

I had made sure to get rid of the letter I had written and left in my drawer several months ago for the police for if I had been killed when the death  
note was first retrieved from the small forest along the school oval. I had failed at disposing the notebook then, but now I knew I was doing the right thing.

I held out my hand to the Shinigami and he stared before reaching with a long red bony hand and taking the notebook from me. As my mind hazed over I heard him mutter "bye" before taking flight and leaving me to resume my previous life.

_My wonderfully boring and now love filled life._

**THE END! Phew, that took a while. Almost a year, but I'm glad it's finally done. Please review to tell me what you think of my work and message me if you have any questions either!**


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